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SERIES  XXXI  NO.   2 

JOHNS  HOPKINS  UNIVERSITY  STUDIES 

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Political  Science 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  AMERICAN 
TRADE  UNIONS 


BY 


THEODORE  W.  GLOCKER,  PH.D. 

Professor  of  Economics  and  Sociology  in  the  University  of  Tennessee 


BALTIMORE 

THE  JOHNS   HOPKINS   PRESS 

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THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  AMERICAN 
TRADE  UNIONS 


SERIES  XXXI  NO.   2 

JOHNS  HOPKINS  UNIVERSITY  STUDIES 

IN 

Historical  and  Political  Science 

Under  the  Direction  of  the 

Departments  of  History,  Political  Economy,  and 
Political  Science 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  AMERICAN 
TRADE  UNIONS 


BY 


THEODORE  W.  GLOCKER,  Ph.D. 

Professor  of  Economics  and  Sociology  in  the  University  of  Tennessee 


BALTIMORE 
THE  JOHNS   HOPKINS   PRESS 


CorVRIGHT  I9I3    BY 

THE  JOHNS  HOPKINS  PRESS 


Press  of 

ime  new  era  printins  coipait 

Lancaster,  pa. 


HD 

Gf3l 


I 


Preface 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

Pagb 

vii 


PART    I 

The  Unit  of  Government 

Chapter  I.     The  Shop  IMeeting 9 

Chapter  II,  The  Composition  of  the  Local  Union.  16 

Chapter  III.     The  Federation  of  Local  Unions 32 

Chapter  IV.     The  Area  of  Federation 57 

PART    II 

The  Centralization  of  Control 

Chapter        V.     The  Decline  of  the  Shop  Meeting  and 

of  the  District  Union 96 

Chapter  VI.  The  Absorption  of  Power  by  the  Na- 
tional  Union 103 

PART   III 

The  Machinery  of  Government 

Chapter  VII.  The  Sources  of  the  Trade-Union  Con- 
stitution      132 

Chapter  VIII.  The  Government  of  the  Minor  Bodies  145 

Chapter      IX.  The  National  Convention 157 

Chapter        X.  The  Officers  of  the  National  Union..    172 

Qiapter      XI.  The  National  Executive  Board 186 

Chapter    XII.  The  Initiative  and  the  Referendum. . .    196 


5D90G5 


PREFACE 

This  study  was  undertaken  while  the  author  was  a  gradu- 
ate student  at  the  Johns  Hopkins  University.  It  was  sub- 
mitted as  a  dissertation  in  partial  fulfilment  of  the  require- 
ments for  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Philosophy  from  that 
institution  in  June,  1907.  Some  portions  of  it  have  been 
amplified  and  other  parts  rewritten  since  that  time. 

The  large  and  valuable  collection  of  trade-union  publica- 
tions at  the  Johns  Hopkins  University  has  been  used,  and 
other  documents  at  the  headquarters  of  the  national  unions 
have  been  consulted.  Use  has  been  made  of  the  scattered 
pamphlet  literature  published  particularly  during  the  second 
quarter  of  the  nineteenth  century.  Information  gleaned 
from  records  has  been  supplemented  by  personal  interviews 
with  officials  of  most  of  the  national  unions  and  with  officers 
of  local  unions  in  Baltimore,  Boston,  New  York,  Chicago, 
and  St.  Louis. 

The  author  wishes  to  acknowledge  the  assistance  received 
at  every  stage  of  the  work  from  Professor  Jacob  H.  Hol- 
lander and  Professor  George  E.  Barnett,  of  the  Johns  Hop- 
kins University. 

T.  W.  G. 


Vii 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  AMERICAN  TRADE 
UNIONS 


PART  I 

THE  UNIT  OF  GOVERNMENT 


CHAPTER  I 
THE  SHOP   MEETING 

The  original  unit  of  government  in  American  labor  or- 
ganization is  the  mass-meeting  of  members  either  in  shop 
meeting  or  in  local  union.  Shop  meetings  are  assemblies  of 
those  working  in  the  same  industrial  establishment,  and  are 
ordinarily  held  in  the  shop  or  factory.  Meetings  of  work- 
men are  nearly  always  convoked,  however,  outside  the  es- 
tablishment, and  are  usually  attended  by  journeymen  not 
merely  from  one  shop  but  from  a  number  of  shops  in  the 
locality.  Popular  assemblies  uniting  the  members  of  a  craft 
throughout  an  entire  community  are  commonly  known  as 
"  locals  "  or  local  unions.  All  other  units  of  government — 
the  district,  state,  national,  and  international  associations — 
are  combinations  of  shop  meetings  or  of  local  unions. 

The  formation  of  permanently  organized  unions  is  usually 
preceded  by  a  period  of  unorganized  resistance  during  which 
the  journeymen  of  a  craft,  when  aroused  to  action  by  a 
reduction  of  wages  or  some  other  specific  grievance,  decide 
without  forethought  or  preparation  to  strike.  For  example, 
the  anthracite  miners,  prior  to  the  formation  of  unions  in 
their  trade,  which  occurred  about  1868,  did  not  passively 

9 


10  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [ll6 

endure  their  low  wages  and  dilapidated  houses  and  the 
mulcting  of  their  earnings  by  the  high-priced  company 
stores.  Isolated  strikes,  incited  by  the  bolder  and  more  tur- 
bulent spirits,  broke  out  now  at  one  mine  and  now  at  an- 
other; but  as  these  movements  were  disunited  and  without 
preparation,  the  employers  succeeded  in  quickly  crushing 
them.^  Sometimes  such  unorganized  movements  involve 
all  the  journeymen  of  a  trade  in  a  locality,  but  as  a  rule 
they  are  limited  to  the  members  of  a  single  shop  or  factory. 
Shop  strikes  occur  frequently  at  the  present  day  in  unorgan- 
ized trades,  and  this  fact  is  often  used  by  labor  leaders  to 
substantiate  their  statements  that  the  strike  preceded  and 
was  not  invented  by  the  trade  union. 

The  form  of  organization  known  as  the  shop  meeting 
has  had  a  long  history.  The  "  shop  call "  existing  among 
the  hatters  of  Danbury,  Connecticut,  as  late  as  1885  was  an 
ancient  institution  which  antedated  the  formation  of  perma- 
nent unions  among  the  craft,  and  it  is  said  to  have  had  its 
origin  far  back  in  colonial  times.  For  many  years,  when- 
ever any  man,  woman,  or  child  working  in  a  hat  factory 
had  a  grievance,  he  or  she  cried,  "  Shop  called."  Immedi- 
ately a  meeting  of  all  the  employees  in  the  shop  was  held, 
and  the  complaint  was  laid  before  them.  If  the  grievance 
was  considered  just,  a  committee  was  appointed  to  wait 
upon  the  employer;  and  if  this  committee  reported  a  rejec- 
tion of  its  demands,  the  members  of  the  shop  assembled  in 
meeting  decided  whether  or  not  to  strike.- 

In  the  trade-union  organization  of  today  the  shop  is  a 
comparatively  unimportant  unit  of  government,  used  ordi- 
narily only  for  limited  administrative  purposes.  Shop  meet- 
ings are.  indeed,  so  inconvenient  that  they  can  be  convoked 
only  at  long  intervals,  otherwise  difficulty  arises  with  em- 
ployers ;  and  they  are  being  discontinued  by  the  Hatters  and 
by  other  unions  among  which  they  once  prevailed. 

Important  exceptions  are  found  in  certain  trades  in  which 

*  First  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics  of  Labor  and 
Agriculture  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Pennsylvania,  p.  328. 
^  New  Haven  Register,  December,  1893. 


I  1 7]  THE    SHOP    MEETING 


I  I 


the  somewhat  elaborate  machinery  of  an  organized  local 
union  is  not  justified  because  the  number  of  workmen  in 
each  community  is  very  small.  The  members  are  united 
through  informal  shop  meetings,  convoked  within  the  walls 
of  the  factory.  Such  is  the  policy  of  the  Print  Cutters,  who 
make  the  wooden  rollers  used  in  printing  wall-paper. 
Whether  the  rollers  are  prepared  by  the  manufacturer  of 
wall-paper  or  by  small  jobbers  who  make  a  specialty  of  this 
kind  of  work,  the  demand  for  rollers  is  so  limited  that 
only  a  mere  handful  of  print  cutters  are  found  in  each  fac- 
tory. As  a  consequence,  even  in  places  where  several  shops 
are  located  the  total  number  of  print  cutters  is  so  small  that 
the  formation  of  a  local  union  is  often  not  deemed  advisable. 
In  fact,  only  four  local  unions  have  been  chartered  by  the 
National  Print  Cutters'  Association,  namely,  one  in  each  of 
the  cities  of  New  York,  Philadelphia,  Buffalo,  and  New 
Brunswick,  New  Jersey.  In  other  cities  the  men  employed 
in  each  shop  hold  meetings  and  elect  a  clerk,  who  collects 
dues  and  enforces  the  observance  of  union  rules.  A  com- 
mittee is  also  created  to  have  charge  of  the  label  and  to  lay 
the  grievances  of  the  men  before  the  employer.  The  mem- 
bers of  a  shop  are  not  permitted  to  strike  or  to  take  any 
decisive  step  without  consulting  the  nearest  local  union,  be- 
cause, it  is  said,  if  power  is  vested  in  such  a  small  body, 
the  leaders  among  them  can  be  too  readily  discovered  and 
punished  for  their  aggressiveness  by  employers. 

The  Machine  Textile  Printers,  who  print  cotton,  and 
woolen  goods,  are  similarly  organized  because  of  similar  con- 
ditions. Whether  textiles  are  printed  by  the  cotton  or 
woolen  manufacturer  or  by  the  small  jobber  who  specializes 
in  this  part  of  the  work,  the  number  of  machine  printers  in 
each  mill  is  small.  The  Machine  Textile  Printers  have  no 
local  unions,  but  maintain  in  each  establishment  an  informal 
shop  organization.  The  shops  are  federated  into  four  dis- 
trict unions,  known  respectively  as  the  Eastern,  the  Western, 
the  Northern,  and  the  Southern  District.  A  "  delegate  "  to 
the  national  board  of  directors  serves  as  the  head  of  each 


12  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [ll8 

district,  and  conventions  of  representatives  from  each  shop 
within  the  district  are  held  at  intervals.^ 

The  employees  in  each  industrial  establishment  might  have 
formed  themselves  into  a  constitutionally  organized  body 
with  meeting  places  outside  of  the  shop  or  factory,  and  in 
this  way  the  members  of  a  trade  in  each  locality  would  have 
been  divided  into  as  many  unions  as  there  were  shops. 
Certain  conditions  made  necessary,  however,  the  early  rise 
of  the  so-called  local  union  with  jurisdiction  over  all  mem- 
bers of  a  craft  in  the  same  town  or  city.  In  the  first  place, 
close  cooperation  was  needed  between  the  journeymen  of 
the  same  trade  in  the  various  shops  of  a  community  in  order 
to  maintain  uniform  conditions  of  employment,  for  if  the 
men  in  one  shop  succeeded  in  raising  wages  above  the  gen- 
eral level,  their  fellow-craftsmen  in  neighboring  establish- 
ments were  likely  to  compete  for  such  choice  employment 
and,  by  underbidding,  force  wages  down  again.  Moreover, 
the  employer  who  was  compelled  to  pay  higher  wages  than 
the  average  was  greatly  handicapped  in  his  struggle  against 
competitors,  and  was  likely  to  be  driven  out  of  business. 
In  the  second  place,  journeymen  in  each  shop  usually — cer- 
tainly during  the  infancy  of  American  trade  unionism — con- 
stituted too  small  a  group  to  enable  them  without  consider- 
able financial  strain  to  rent  a  hall,  pay  officers'  salaries,  and 
meet  all  expenses  incident  to  the  maintenance  of  a  well- 
organized  society.  In  other  words,  the  government  of  one 
large  mass-meeting  is  more  economical  than  the  government 
of  many  small  ones.  Finally,  the  beneficiary  aims  of  early 
trade  societies  also  rendered  advantageous,  from  a  financial 
standpoint,  as  large  a  membership  as  possible.  In  nearly  all 
trades,  therefore,  the  first  governmental  trade  body  possess- 
ing a  constitution,  meeting  at  regular  intervals,  and  bar- 
gaining with  employers  according  to  certain  definite  policies 
was  the  local  union. 

In  certain  trades  where  the  industrial  establishments  are 

'  Rules,  Regulations  and  By-Laws  of  the  Machine  Printers'  Bene- 
ficial Association  of  the  United  States,  1886.  The  constitution  of 
1886  is  still  in  force. 


119]  '^^^    SHOP    MEETING  1 3 

exceptionally  large  and  widely  scattered  the  journeymen 
working  for  each  employer  constitute  a  single  local  union. 
The  miners  at  each  colliery,  who  are  a  numerous  and  more 
or  less  isolated  body,  usually  compose  the  primary  unit  of 
government.  At  first,  informal  meetings  were  held  when- 
ever an  emergency  required,  either  in  the  pit,  or  on  the  open 
common  near  the  shaft  of  the  mine  ;*  but  after  some  diffi- 
culty the  miners  were  slowly  persuaded  to  hire  a  hall,  meet 
at  regular  intervals,  and  adopt  a  constitution.  Great  mass- 
meetings  of  the  miners  at  all  pits  in  the  vicinity  of  a  certain 
town  have  indeed  been  convoked,  but  only  very  occasionally, 
and  for  a  specific  purpose.  In  the  bituminous  coal  fields 
of  western  Pennsylvania,  for  example,  when  the  miners  at 
one  colliery  "  blacklegged,"  in  other  words,  when  they  filled 
the  contracts  of  a  neighboring  pit  where  the  men  were  on 
strike,  the  workers  at  the  other  collieries  in  the  vicinity 
would  occasionally  hold  a  mass-meeting,  pass  resolutions  of 
remonstrance,  and  sometimes  march  in  a  procession  to  the 
blacklegging  pit,  there  to  camp  until  the  men  laid  down  their 
picks." 

Since  in  the  window  glass  industry  the  factories  are  all 
large  and  since  there  is  usually  only  one  plant  in  each  town, 
the  several  national  unions"  of  window  glass  workers  organ- 
ize the  men  in  each  establishment  into  a  governmental  body, 
known  as  the  "  preceptory."  In  a  few  of  the  places  where 
two  or  more  window  glass  factories  exist  the  workers  meet 
together  in  joint  session.  There  has  been  considerable  oppo- 
sition to  these  joint  mass-meetings,  and  the  recently  formed 
Amalgamated  Window  Glass  Workers  of  America  at  the 
first  annual  convention  forbade  its  members  to  hold  tliem.'^ 

Among  the  shirt,  waist,  and  laundry  workers  of  Troy  the 
employees  in  each  factory  at  first  constituted  a  separate 
union.     The  United   Laundry  Workers,  chartered  by  the 

'  National  Labor  Tribune,  July  23,  1883,  p.  5. 
°  Ibid.,  July  28,  1880. 

'The  terms  'national  union'  and  'international  union'  are  used 
synonymously  throughout  this  essay.     See  below,  p.  75. 
^Proceedings,  1905,  p.  116. 


14  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS        [l20 

American  Federation  of  Labor  in  1899,  permitted  the  mem- 
bers of  one  "  shop  union  "  to  enroll  laundry  workers  em- 
ployed in  another  factory,  provided  they  were  given  neither 
voice  nor  vote  in  the  meetings.  When  ten  laundry  workers 
from  another  factory  had  been  admitted,  they  were  to  be 
organized  into  a  separate  union.  In  the  case  of  custom  or 
small  laundries  a  union  of  members  working  in  several 
shops  could  be  formed.®  When  in  1900  the  Laundry  Workers 
were  merged  into  the  Shirt,  Waist,  and  Laundry  Workers' 
International  Union,  no  such  rules  were  adopted ;  and  ap- 
parently the  general  policy  of  the  present  association  is  to 
organize  in  each  city  either  a  single  local  union  or  several 
local  unions,  one  for  each  branch  of  the  trade. 

In  the  railway  unions  the  members  are  organized,  when- 
ever practicable,  according  to  the  railroad  upon  which  they 
are  employed.  The  Brotherhood  of  Locomotive  Engineers 
permits  five  or  more  engineers  working  on  the  same  railway 
system  to  organize  a  lodge  or  local  subdivision.  In  some  in- 
stances the  brotherhood  has  had  to  organize  subdivisions 
comprising  engineers  who  run  engines  on  dififerent  roads.^ 
The  Locomotive  Firemen,  the  Conductors,  and  the  Train- 
men also  organize  their  members,  whenever  practicable,  into 
local  lodges  according  to  the  system  upon  which  they  are 
employed,  though  none  of  them  have,  like  the  Engineers, 
adopted  a  fixed  rule  to  this  effect.  Even  the  yardmen, 
whose  work  is  localized  in  character,  whose  wages  vary 
at  different  points  on  the  same  railroad,  and  whose  methods 
of  bargaining  are  perhaps  somewhat  less  uniform  than  those 
of  the  other  railroad  employees,  have  found  advantageous 
in  many  cases  the  plan  of  organizing  the  members  accord- 
ing to  the  railway  system  on  which  they  work.  Thus  the 
local  union  of  switchmen  in  Buffalo  at  first  included  switch- 
men employed  in  the  yards  of  the  New  York  Central,  Mich- 
igan Central,  Lake  Shore,  Nickel  Plate,  and  other  lines 
running  into  that  city.     The  inconvenience  of  this  policy 

*  Constitution  and  By-Laws,  1899,  art.  iii. 

'Constitution  and  Statutes,  1904:  Constitution,  sec.  50,  Standing 
Rules,  sees,  i,  2. 


I2l]  THE    SHOP    MEETING  1 5 

was  soon  manifest.  At  meetings  of  the  union  complaint 
was  made  that  the  men  employed  by  the  New  York  Central, 
who  formed  a  majority,  would  cause  all  questions  relating 
to  their  own  system — questions  upon  which  in  all  probabil- 
ity only  they  themselves  could  vote — to  be  considered  early 
in  the  evening.  Matters  of  interest  to  switchmen  on  other 
roads  were  delayed  until  midnight,  and  sometimes  not  con- 
sidered at  all.  Much  ill-feeling  was  engendered ;  and  today 
there  are  six  switchmen's  lodges  in  Buffalo,  one  for  each 
line  having  terminal  facilities  in  that  city.  In  many  places, 
however,  the  yardmen  on  all  railroads  are  organized  into 
one  local  union.  Save  in  the  above  exceptional  instances 
and  in  those  places  where  there  happens  to  be  only  one  shop 
or  factory  devoted  to  a  particular  industry,  the  employees 
in  each  commercial  or  manufacturing  establishment  are  not 
organized  into  separate  unions. 


CHAPTER  II 
THE   COMPOSITION   OF   THE   LOCAL   UNION 

The  territorial  jurisdiction  of  a  local  union  is  usually 
bounded  by  corporate  limits  of  the  town  or  city  in  which 
it  is  located.  In  some  instances,  however,  its  territorial 
jurisdiction  is  extended  so  as  to  include  small  outlying  towns, 
since  the  journeymen  in  such  places,  organized  or  unorgan- 
ized, may  seriously  undermine  the  scale  of  wages  enforced 
by  the  strong  union  in  a  large  city.  The  New  York  local 
union  of  the  International  Printing  Pressmen  and  Assist- 
ants' Union,  for  example,  has  jurisdiction  over  members  of 
the  trade  within  a  radius  of  fifty  miles  from  the  city,  and 
includes  pressmen  in  such  towns  as  Hoboken,  Jersey  City, 
and  Newark,  as  well  as  the  several  boroughs  of  Greater  New 
York. 

In  a  few  instances  certain  peculiar  conditions  of  the 
trade  have  rendered  necessary  the  formation  of  local  unions 
of  even  wider  territorial  jurisdiction  than  the  Pressmen's 
Union  of  New  York  City.  Thus  the  structural  iron  workers 
who  are  sent  out  in  gangs  from  large  cities  to  build  bridges, 
frequently  form  colonies  in  isolated  communities,  and  the 
territorial  jurisdiction  of  the  local  union  in  each  large  city 
is  made  broad  enough  to  include  these  colonies.  The  Qeve- 
land  local  union,  for  example,  embraces  within  its  mem- 
bership all  structural  iron  workers  in  forty-three  counties. 
Similar  conditions  exist  among  the  compressed  air  workers, 
who  work  in  the  caissons  and  diving-bells  used  in  driving 
piles  and  building  piers  for  bridges.  The  important  com- 
panies employing  compressed  air  workers  have  their  offices 
in  New  York  City,  whence  gangs  of  men  are  sent  to  all 
parts  of  the  country;  and  the  union  of  the  craft,  though 
bearing  the  title  of  a  national  organization,  is  really  a  local 

i6 


123]  COMPOSITION    OF    THE    LOCAL    UNION  1 7 

union  of  about  four  hundred  members,  with  headquarters  in 
New  York  City.  The  men  in  each  colony  maintain  an  in- 
formal organization  during  the  weeks  or  months  in  which 
they  are  absent  from  New  York,  but  their  wages  are  fixed 
by  the  local  union  before  they  leave  the  city,  and  all  power 
is  practically  vested  in  the  mass-meeting  of  members  who 
remain  in  New  York. 

During  the  early  days  of  American  trade  unionism  the 
journeymen  of  each  craft  constituted  a  fairly  homogeneous 
body,  and  each  of  the  early  local  societies  admitted  any 
worker  at  the  trade  living  in  the  territory  over  which  it 
claimed  jurisdiction.  The  division  of  labor,  the  influx  of 
foreigners,  and  the  appearance  of  women  and  negroes  in 
industry  have  created  distinct  groups  within  the  craft,  how- 
ever, and  have  made  necessary  in  many  trades  the  organiza- 
tion of  these  groups  into  separate  local  unions. 

Before  the  rise  of  American  trade  unions  the  work  in 
certain  industries  had  already  been  subdivided.  In  the  early 
part  of  the  nineteenth  century  there  were  employed,  for  ex- 
ample, upon  the  building  of  a  ship  a  number  of  different 
craftsmen,  such  as  the  sail-maker,  the  rigger,  the  ship-carpen- 
ter, the  ship- joiner,  and  the  caulker.^  With  the  development 
of  industry  in  the  United  States  many  other  crafts  have  been 
divided  into  numerous  subcrafts  or  branches.  In  place  of 
the  shoemaker,  who  received  the  leather  from  the  middle- 
man and  made  the  whole  shoe  in  his  own  little  shop,  there 
have  appeared  the  cutter,  the  fitter,  the  treer,  the  stitcher, 
the  laster,  the  heeler,  the  sole  tacker,  the  edge  maker,  and  the 
shoe  fastener,  all  working  together  in  large  establishments  to 
produce  the  finished  article.  The  tailor  who  cut  the  gar- 
ment and  sewed  it  with  his  needle  has  been  replaced  in  the 
ready-made  clothing  industry  and,  to  a  certain  extent,  even 
in  the  custom  trade  by  the  measurer,  the  cutter,  the  trimmer, 
the   stitcher,   the   baster,   the   examiner,   the   sponger,    the 

*  Baltimore  American  and  Commercial  Daily  Advertiser,  June 
30,  1809. 


1 8  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [124 

presser  on  coats,  the  presser  on  pants,  the  roller,  and  the 
folder.  At  first,  the  divisions  of  a  trade  were  by  no  means 
rigidly  fixed.  Thus  even  today,  although  the  work  of  man- 
ufacturing a  cigar  is  often  divided  between  a  leaf  selector, 
a  stripper,  a  filler,  a  breaker,  and  a  roller,  yet  in  many  shops 
the  same  journeyman  performs  all  of  these  separate  proc- 
esses, and  the  union  insists  that  whenever  it  is  possible  the 
apprentice  be  trained  to  be  an  "  all-round  workman,"  cap- 
able of  making  the  whole  cigar.  Gradually,  however,  the 
several  branches  assume  all  the  characteristics  of  distinct 
trades.  In  the  clothing  trade,  for  example,  the  baster  comes 
to  know  only  his  special  part  and  cannot  perform  the  work 
of  the  cutter;  he  is  paid  a  different  wage,  and  is  absorbed 
completely  in  his  peculiar  class  interests. 

There  is  now  a  strong  tendency  to  unite  all  of  the  trades 
or  divisions  of  a  trade  in  any  one  industry  into  a  single 
national  federation  of  local  societies.  Thus  the  present  na- 
tional union  of  wooden  ship-builders  includes  shipwrights, 
joiners,  caulkers,  boat  builders,  and  ship  cabinet-makers. 
For  many  years  the  International  Typographical  Union  em- 
braced bookbinders,  compositors,  pressmen,  stereotypers  and 
electrotypers,  and  photo-engravers,  and  today  it  has  jurisdic- 
tion over  compositors,  proof-readers,  machine  tenders, 
mailers,  and  type  founders. 

The  organization  of  the  members  of  several  trades  or 
branches  of  a  trade  in  the  same  local  union  has,  however, 
been  found  undesirable.  In  the  first  place,  each  group  of 
workmen  in  an  industry  resents  the  right  of  the  other  groups 
to  vote  upon  the  numerous  matters  which  it  considers  its 
particular  concern.  If  in  addition  one  group  of  workers 
is  in  the  majority  and  is  able  to  dominate  the  general  meet- 
ing, friction  is  almost  inevitable.  At  the  same  time,  the 
very  close  cooperation  required  to  maintain  a  uniform  scale 
of  wages  for  journeymen  performing  the  same  work  is 
unnecessary  between  groups  of  employees  doing  different 
kinds  of  work  and  hence  receiving  different  wages. 

As  lines  of  cleavage  have  appeared  within  the  craft,  local 


12  5]  COMPOSITION    OF    THE    LOCAL    UNION  IQ 

societies  have  split  asunder  into  several  independent  unions, 
one  for  each  branch  of  the  trade.  The  Iron  Holders'  Union 
of  North  America,^  the  Amalgamated  Association  of  Iron, 
Steel  and  Tin  Workers,^  and  other  national  unions  from  the 
beginning  of  their  history  have  permitted  the  constituent 
trades  or  divisions  of  a  trade  to  form  separate  local  societies. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  International  Typographical  Union 
has  as  far  as  possible  required  all  members  of  the  craft  to  be 
united  in  a  single  local  union,  and  has  departed  from  this 
policy  only  in  exceptional  cases  and  then  with  great  re- 
luctance.'* The  national  unions  of  window  glass  workers  do 
not  subdivide  their  members  according  to  the  four  branches 
of  the  craft,  but  unite  all  the  employees  in  the  same  plant 
into  one  local  union.  Unions  of  unskilled  laborers  need  not 
subdivide  their  members  according  to  the  character  of  their 
work.  For  example,  the  Laborers'  Protective  Society  of 
New  York  City  is  a  local  union  composed  of  hod-carriers, 
mortar-mixers,  and  other  helpers  of  the  bricklayers  and  the 
masons.  The  National  Association  of  Blast  Furnace  Work- 
ers and  Smelters  of  America,  a  union  of  comparatively  un- 
skilled workers,  does  not  attempt  to  organize  those  doing 
different  kinds  of  work  into  separate  local  unions. 

As  the  division  of  labor  is  made  more  minute  and  as  ma- 
chinery is  introduced,  work  becomes  more  unskilled,  the  em- 
ployees pass  more  readily  from  one  kind  of  work  to  another, 
differences  between  trades  begin  to  be  obliterated,  and  organ- 
ization into  separate  local  unions  according  to  branch  of  em- 
ployment is  unnecessary.  In  the  large  packing  houses  of 
Chicago  the  work  is  minutely  divided.  Thus,  in  the  depart- 
ment of  cattle  butchering  alone  there  are  over  thirty  special- 
ists from  the  unskilled  foot  skinner  and  paunch  trimmer  to 
the  skilled  splitter  and  floorman.  Apprenticeship  is  un- 
known, and  the  unskilled  workman  passes  by  promotion 
from  the  lowest  to  the  highest  grade  of  work.     Between 

'  Constitution.  1859,  art.  iii,  sec.  2,  in  Proceedings,  1859. 

'  National  Labor  Tribune,  August  5,  1876.  p.  i. 

*  G.  E.  Barnett,  "The  Government  of  the  Typographical  Union."  in 
Studies  in  American  Trade  Unionism,  ed.  by  Hollander  and  Bar- 
nett, pp.  24-25. 


20  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS        [l26 

employees  in  different  departments  there  is  some  distinction, 
and  the  Amalgamated  Meat  Cutters  and  Butcher  Workmen 
gather  those  in  each  department  into  a  separate  union.  In 
the  city  of  Chicago,  for  example,  there  are  local  unions  of 
cattle  butchers,  hog  butchers,  hide  cellar  men,  oleomargarine 
workers,  sausage  makers,  lard  refinery  employees,  and  so  on, 
but  the  continual  shifting  from  one  kind  of  work  to  another 
makes  the  subdivision  of  those  in  each  department  unde- 
sirable.^ Similarly,  among  the  mine  workers,  whose  na- 
tional union  gathers  together  into  the  same  body  all  classes 
of  employees  about  a  colliery,  there  is  a  constant  movement 
upward  from  the  least  skilled  to  the  most  skilled  work.  The 
breaker  boy,  the  door  boy,  or  the  fan  boy  may  later  become  a 
driver  or  a  runner,  or  may  by  successive  steps  be  promoted 
from  mine  laborer  to  miner  and,  if  he  show  ability,  from 
miner  to  fire  boss  and  foreman.  By  a  reverse  process  the 
skilled  miner,  incapacitated  by  accident  or  old  age,  returns  to 
slate  picking,  and  so  becomes  a  breaker  boy  again. 

In  some  national  unions  there  has  been  urged  the  adoption 
of  a  rule  requiring  that  the  members  doing  a  certain  kind 
of  work  be  always  organized  into  separate  local  unions,  and 
that  in  places  where  they  are  not  sufficiently  numerous  to 
form  a  union  they  join  the  nearest  local  union  of  this  branch 
of  the  trade.  Such  a  rule  was  advocated  but  not  passed  by 
the  Cigar  Makers'  International  Union  after  the  admission 
of  the  cigar  packers  about  1885.®  Most  national  unions 
charter  a  separate  local  union  for  each  of  the  most  impor- 
tant branches  of  the  trade  in  the  large  cities,  and  in  the 
small  places  unite  all  members  in  one  union.  In  small  com- 
munities there  are  too  few  of  each  division  of  the  craft  to 
warrant  separation,  and  the  boundaries  between  trades  are 
not  always  so  clearly  defined  as  in  the  large  cities.     Thus 

"  For  an  account  of  the  method  of  organization  and  history  of 
the  growth  of  locals  among  the  workers  in  the  different  departments 
of  the  Chicago  packing  houses,  see  Official  Journal  [Amalgamated 
Meat  Cutters  and  Butcher  Workmen  of  North  America],  March, 
1903,  pp.  1-12.  See  also  J.  R.  Commons,  "  Labor  Conditions  in 
Slaughtering  and  Meat  Packing,"  in  Quarterly  Journal  of  Economics, 
vol.  xix,  pp.  1-32. 

°  Proceedings,  1887. 


127]  COMPOSITION    OF    THE    LOCAL    UNION  21 

the  bricklayers  who  in  the  large  cities  only  lay  bricks,  in 
rural  sections  often  do  the  work  of  stone  masons  and 
plasterers. 

The  policy  of  the  national  unions  varies  greatly.  Some  of 
them,  such  as  the  associations  of  brick,  tile,  and  terra  cotta 
workers  and  of  the  ship-wrights,  joiners,  and  caulkers,  grant 
charters  to  separate  divisions  of  the  craft  only  in  the  largest 
centers  of  the  industry.  In  the  important  shoe  centers  sep- 
arate charters  are  granted  to  a  number  of  the  various 
branches  of  boot-  and  shoemakers.  In  other  places,  while 
the  lasters  and  cutters  who  form  the  most  skilled  portion  of 
the  craft  are  organized  into  separate  local  unions,  all  other 
branches  of  the  trade  are  gathered  together  into  one  union. 
In  some  of  the  smaller  centers  all  boot  and  shoe  workers  are 
organized  into  a  single  local  union. 

The  International  Ladies'  Garment  Workers'  Union 
divides  its  members  into  local  unions  primarily  according  to 
the  particular  garment  upon  which  they  are  employed,  and 
subordinate  unions  of  ladies'  waistmakers,  shirt  makers, 
and  cloak  operators  have  been  formed  in  New  York  City. 
The  cutters,  who  compose  probably  one  of  the  most  skilled 
groups  among  the  garment  workers,  desire  whenever  it  is 
possible  to  be  organized  separately  from  the  other  divisions 
of  the  trade,  and  cutters  on  all  kinds  of  ladies'  garments  are 
usually  gathered  together  into  one  local  union.  In  New 
York,  however,  some  attempt  has  been  made  to  subdivide 
them  again  according  to  the  garment  upon  which  they  are 
employed.  The  Gotham  Association,  for  example,  is  com- 
posed of  all  cutters  upon  washable  goods.  The  United  Cloak 
and  Suit  Cutters'  Association  claims  jurisdiction  over  cutters 
in  all  shops  devoted  exclusively  to  the  manufacture  of  ladies' 
outer  garments.  In  some  places  the  cloak  pressers  are  formed 
into  separate  unions.^  The  United  Garment  Workers,  com- 
posed of  those  manufacturing  men's  ready-made  clothing, 
carry  out  much  more  completely  this  twofold  division  into 
local  unions  according  to  the  kind  of  garment  and  the  par- 

^  Quarterly  Report  of  the  International  Ladies'  Garment  Work- 
ers' Union,  December  i,  1902,  to  March  i,  1903,  p.  4. 


22  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [l28 

ticular  part  of  the  work  done.  The  line  of  demarcation  is, 
however,  difificult  to  maintain.  Ladies'  cloak  and  suit  fac- 
tories, for  example,  make  washable  garments,  either  regu- 
larly, or  at  times  when  the  demand  for  their  special  line  of 
goods  falls  off;  and  this  has  caused  some  friction  between 
the  association  of  ladies'  cloak  and  suit  cutters  and  the  asso- 
ciation of  cutters  on  ladies'  washable  goods  in  New  York 
City.  To  conclude,  rigid  rules  are  impracticable.  The  organ- 
ization of  local  societies  must  be  determined  by  the  peculiar 
way  in  which  the  trade  is  subdivided  and  by  the  conditions 
in  each  city. 

Many  national  associations  which  grant  separate  charters 
to  each  branch  of  the  trade  have  refused  further  to  sub- 
divide the  local  union  so  as  to  create  more  than  one  local 
union  for  each  branch.  The  objections  are  that  the  exist- 
ence of  two  or  more  unions  in  the  same  branch  of  the  trade 
in  any  locality  may  mean  two  or  more  conflicting  wage  scales 
and  sets  of  apprentice  rules ;  that  several  small  unions  are 
more  expensive  than  one  large  one;  and  that  if  suspended 
members  or  a  dissatisfied  minority  can  secede  and  obtain 
a  separate  charter  or  join  another  existing  society,  the  au- 
thority of  the  local  union  will  be  undermined.  The  unions 
of  a  trade  in  each  locality  can,  however,  maintain  uniform 
conditions  of  employment  by  cooperating  together  in  district 
councils.  The  local  union  may  be  prevented  from  becoming 
too  small  by  fixing  a  minimum  number  of  apphcants  to 
whom  a  charter  may  be  granted.  In  order  to  keep  suspended 
members  of  a  local  union  from  getting  a  charter,  many 
national  unions  require  that  the  consent  of  the  unions  al- 
ready existing  in  the  community  must  first  be  obtained. 
Since,  however,  this  rule  prevents  the  formation  of  local 
unions  even  when  it  is  desirable,  the  Cigar  Makers'  Inter- 
national Union  and  a  few  other  organizations  vest  all  power 
to  grant  charters  in  the  national  executive  board ;  but  before 
a  new  charter  is  granted,  the  application  must  be  brought 
to  the  attention  of  the  other  unions  in  the  community,  and 


129]  COMPOSITION    OF    THE    LOCAL    UNION.  23 


all  objections  are  carefully  considered.^  So,  while  the  Boot 
and  Shoe  Workers'  Union,''  the  United  Brewery  Workmen,^*^ 
and  a  few  other  national  associations  recognize  in  the  com- 
position of  their  local  units  of  government  only  differences 
in  the  kind  of  work,  many  others  subdivide  the  members  into 
subordinate  unions  according  to  differences  of  sex,  color, 
nationality,  and  sometimes  merely  for  governmental  con- 
venience. 

Experience  has  shown  that  whenever  it  is  possible  women 
should  be  organized  separately.  In  the  first  place,  women 
hesitate  to  join  a  union  composed  largely  of  men.  More- 
over, the  claim  is  made  that  in  mixed  local  unions  the  men 
do  not  accord  the  women  full  opportunity  to  discuss  their 
particular  class  concerns,  and  show  prejudice  when  allowed 
to  vote  on  questions  of  interest  to  their  female  members. 
Certainly,  womens'  unions  enroll  a  much  larger  proportion 
of  the  female  section  of  the  trade  and  arouse  greater  and 
more  sustained  enthusiasm  than  do  mixed  unions. 

Local  unions  composed  wholly  of  women  undoubtedly 
existed  at  an  early  date.  About  1833  the  United  Beneficial 
Society  of  Journeymen  Cordwainers  of  New  York  City 
organized  a  women's  branch  which  was  not  strong,  and  came 
together  only  as  occasion  demanded.^'^  The  cordwainers  of 
Philadelphia  also  formed  a  women's  branch  about  this  time.^- 
In  1846  the  female  shoe  stitchers  of  Lynn  formed  a  Stitch- 
ers' League,  which  was  wrecked  by  a  few  malcontents  after  a 
short  existence.  In  1855  the  stitchers  of  Lynn  secretly  re- 
organized and  maintained  an  existence  for  a  few  years,  and 
these  same  stitchers  of  Lynn  were  the  first  of  the  boot  and 

'  Constitution  of  the  Cigar  Makers,  adopted  1896,  fourteenth  edi- 
tion, sec.  170. 

*  Constitution,  revised  1906,  sec.  41. 

*"  Constitution,  1904,  art.  ix,  sec.  i. 

"  Rise  and  Progress  of  the  General  Trades'  Union  of  the  City  of 
New  York,  and  its  Vicinity,  with  an  Address  to  the  Mechanics  in 
the  Citv  of  New  York  and  through  the  United  States.  New  York, 
1833.     P.  I. 

"  Address  issued  to  the  Citizens  and  Government  of  Philadelphia. 
Philadelphia,  1835. 


24  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS        [  1 3O 

shoe  workers  to  apply  for  a  charter  from  the  Knights  of 
Labor  in  1883.  They  were  organized  as  Daughters  of  Labor 
Assembly  No.  3016  and,  in  accordance  with  the  policy  of 
the  Knights  of  Labor,  admitted  not  only  stitchers,  but  also 
women  working  at  other  trades/^  Local  unions  of  female 
laundry  workers,  cap  makers,  printers,  parasol  and  umbrella 
makers,  tailors,  and  workers  in  other  trades  were  organized 
in  various  places  after  the  close  of  the  Civil  War.  In  1870 
the  National  Lodge  of  the  Daughters  of  St.  Crispin  was 
formed,  with  subordinate  lodges  of  stitchers  in  various 
places.  A  convention  of  the  women's  unions  in  New  York 
State  was  held  in  the  same  year,  and  an  attempt  was  made 
to  form  a  State  Workingwomen's  Association,  but  the  or- 
ganization died  with  the  adjournment  of  the  convention.^* 
The  depression  which  began  in  1873  wrought  the  destruction 
of  women's  societies  in  common  with  the  general  destruc- 
tion of  most  trade  unions  throughout  the  country.  Of  late 
years  the  movement  to  organize  women  as  compared  with 
the  growth  of  trade  unions  among  men  has  proceeded  but 
slowly,  though  with  more  success  in  the  West  than  in  the 
East.  In  Chicago  the  movement  has,  indeed,  attained  con- 
siderable proportions.  An  overwhelming  majority  of  tlie 
women  workers  in  twenty-six  different  trades,  with  a  total 
membership  of  about  thirty-five  thousand,  were  organized 
in  1904.  The  list  includes  unions  of  women  cracker  packers, 
waitresses,  laundresses,  paper-box  makers,  and  scrub- 
women, and  embraces,  with  two  important  exceptions — 
namely,  the  servant  girls  and  the  stenographers — almost 
every  trade  in  which  women  are  extensively  employed  in 
Chicago. 

When,  as  in  the  case  of  the  boot  and  shoe  stitchers,  the 
overall  workers,  and  the  hat  trimmers,  all  those  in  one 
branch  of  a  trade  are  women,  the  problem  of  separating  the 
two  sexes  resolves  itself  simply  into  a  division  according 

"  The  Laster,  February  15,  1889,  p.  i. 

"Annual  Address  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings  of  the  Seventh 
Annual  Session  of  the  New  York  State  Workingmen's  Assembly, 
1871. 


131 J  COMPOSITION    OF    THE    LOC.VL    UNION  25 

to  the  nature  of  their  work.  The  female  branch  of  the  trade 
is,  as  a  rule,  organized  in  large  cities  into  a  separate  local 
union ;  in  small  places  a  mixed  union  of  both  sexes  is 
formed.  Sometimes,  however,  when  the  interests  of  the 
male  and  female  branches  are  very  closely  interwoven,  they 
are  organized  together  even  in  large  cities.  Thus,  while  the 
bookbinders  have  formed  a  women's  union  of  stitchers  in 
New  York  City,  yet  the  female  stampers  of  New  York  are 
combined  with  the  male  gold  layers. 

When  women  compete  with  men  for  the  same  work,  a 
mixed  local  is  usually  formed  in  order  better  to  enforce  the 
payment  to  them  of  the  same  wages  as  men.  Thus,  in  the 
shirt,  waist,  and  collar  factories  of  Troy  the  ironers,  some 
of  whom  are  men  and  some  women,  are  combined  into  one 
union.  In  1869  the  International  Typographical  Union 
granted  a  charter  to  the  female  compositors  of  New  York 
City.  After  several  years'  experience,  the  women  were 
found  to  be  working  for  a  lower  wage  scale  than  the  male 
printers ;  the  charter  was  therefore  revoked,  and  the  Typo- 
graphical Union  has  never  attempted  since  then  to  form  in- 
dependent unions  of  women. ^^  One  important  exception  in 
this  connection  is  the  Amalgamated  Meat  Cutters  and 
Butcher  Workmen.  Within  the  last  few  years  women  have 
partly  replaced  men  at  some  branches  of  work  in  the  large 
meat  packing  houses.  The  butchers  have  made  no  attempt 
to  force  the  women  to  join  the  unions  composed  of  men  in 
each  department.  On  the  contrary,  the  female  employees 
scattered  throughout  all  departments  are  at  Chicago,  South 
Omaha,  and  other  meat  packing  centers  gathered  into  one 
large  local  union  known  as  the  "  Woman's  Union. "^"^ 

The  appearance  of  the  negro  as  an  industrial  competitor 
caused  another  division  of  the  local  union  in  a  number  of 
trades.     After  the  close  of  the  Civil  War  the  competition  of 

"  Barnett.  The  Government  of  the  Typographical  Union,  p.  23. 

^'  T.  W.  Glocker,  "  The  Unit  of  Government  in  the  Meat  Cutters' 
and  Butchers'  Union,"  in  the  Johns  Hopkins  University  Circular, 
new  sen,  1905,  no.  6. 


26  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [132 

the  newly  emancipated  negro  was  greatly  feared  by  many 
American  workmen.  "  The  negro,"  declared  the  president 
of  the  Workingmen's  Assembly  of  the  State  of  New  York  in 
1870,  "will  no  longer  submit  to  occupy  positions  of  a  de- 
grading nature,  but  will  seek  an  equality  with  the  whites  in 
the  various  trades  and  professions.  For  a  time,  we  may 
not  have  to  contend  against  their  labor ;  and  all  may  be  well. 
Yet  I  feel  impressed  with  the  necessity  of  preparing  for  the 
future  by  organizing  such  colored  workmen  as  may  now 
or  hereafter  exist  into  unions  by  themselves,  and  recogniz- 
ing their  organizations.  If  we  discard  this  element  of  labor 
and  refuse  to  recognize  it,  capital  will  recognize  it  and  use 
it  to  our  great  disadvantage."^''  Already,  indeed,  in  1867 
the  importation  of  colored  ship  caulkers  from  Portsmouth, 
Virginia,  to  Boston  during  the  struggle  in  that  city  for  an 
eight-hour  day  had  been  a  practical  illustration  of  the  way 
in  which  the  negro  might  be  used  as  a  strike  breaker.^^ 

At  this  time  the  white  mechanics  refused  consistently  to 
admit  colored  men  into  their  own  local  unions;  and  in  very 
few  localities  were  there  enough  negroes  employed  at  the 
same  trade  to  make  possible  the  formation  of  separate  col- 
ored unions.  Partly  through  the  efforts  of  the  Working- 
men's  Assembly  of  the  State  of  New  York,  three  organiza- 
tions of  colored  men  were  formed  in  New  York  City  in  1870, 
namely,  the  Saloon  Men's  Protective  and  Benevolent  Union, 
the  Colored  Waiters'  Association,  and  the  First  Combined 
Labor  Institute.  A  Colored  National  Labor  Union  was  also 
formed  in  1869,  and  held  several  annual  sessions.  This  or- 
ganization aimed  to  secure  higher  wages  for  colored  men 
and  to  increase  the  number  of  occupations  in  which  they 
could  find  employment ;  it  gave  attention  also  to  the  problem 
of  obtaining  better  school  facilities  for  colored  children,  and 
was  interested  in  certain  cooperative  land  and  home-building 

"  Proceedings  of  the  Sixth  Annual  Session  of  the  Workingmen's 
Assembly  of  the  State  of  New  York,  1870,  p.  15. 

"  Address  of  the  National  Labor  Congress  to  the  Workingmen  of 
the  United  States.    Chicago,  1867. 


133]  COMPOSITION    OF    THE    LOCAL    UNION  2/ 

schemes.^'*  But  the  desire  for  political  rights  and  for  recog- 
nition by  the  political  parties  at  this  time  completely  filled  the 
minds  of  the  negroes  to  the  exclusion  of  industrial  matters. 
Their  trade  associations  seem  to  have  degenerated  largely 
into  political  clubs,  and  the  trade-union  movement  inaug- 
urated among  them  during  this  period  met  apparently  with 
little  success. 

At  first  the  international  unions  of  cigar  makers,  brick- 
layers, and  members  of  certain  other  trades  absolutely  ex- 
cluded negroes  from  membership,  and  a  few  of  them  did  not 
remove  the  ban  for  many  years.  Many  other  international 
unions,  particularly  those  which  have  felt  the  competition  of 
the  negroes  most  keenly,  have  admitted  them  freely  from 
the  first.  The  American  Federation  of  Labor  refuses  to 
enroll  national  unions  which  draw  distinctions  as  to  color. 
In  1891  it  forced  the  International  Association  of  Machin- 
ists to  admit  negroes  by  countenancing  a  rival  international 
organization  which  did  not  draw  the  color  line.  In  1894  the 
barrier  against  the  admission  of  colored  men  was  removed 
by  the  International  Association  of  Machinists,  and  in  the 
following  year  the  two  rival  organizations  united.-*^ 

When  the  national  associations  have  removed  the  ban  of 
prohibition,  subordinate  local  unions  have  frequently  refused 
to  admit  negroes,  and  have  demanded  that  they  be  organized 
under  separate  charters.  As  a  rule,  distinctions  as  to  color 
are  less  frequently  made  in  the  North.  Shortly  after  the 
women  in  the  Chicago  meat  packing  houses  were  unionized, 
a  colored  girl  asked  admittance  to  the  meeting  room.  "  Ad- 
mit her,"  said  the  president  after  a  moment's  silence,  "  and 
let  every  one  give  her  a  hearty  welcome."  Since  that  time 
colored  women  have  been  freely  admitted  to  membership.-^ 
In  the  South,  however,  where  negroes  are  more  numerous 

"  Circular  Issued  by  the  Colored  National  Labor  Union  to  the 
Colored  Workmen  of  the  United  States,  Organized  in  Trades,  Labor, 
and  Industrial  Unions.  Calling  for  Selection  of  Delegates,  and  Out- 
lining Proposed  Work  of  the  Second  Annual  Meeting,  Held  in 
Washington,  Jan.  9,  1871. 

"  Report  of  the  Industrial  Commission,  vol.  xvii,  p.  217. 

"  Official  Journal  [Amalgamated  Meat  Cutters  and  Butcher  Work- 
men of  North  America],  October,  1902,  p.  28. 


28  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [  1 34 

and  race  feeling  is  stronger,  they  are  usually  formed  into 
separate  local  unions.  In  one  instance  the  white  carpenters 
of  New  Orleans,  about  1884,  refused  to  join  a  local  union 
of  the  trade  affiliated  with  the  National  Brotherhood  of 
Carpenters  and  Joiners  because  the  charter  for  New  Orleans 
was  already  held  by  a  few  blacks,  and  at  that  time  the 
brotherhood  refused  to  grant  more  than  one  charter  in  the 
same  city.^^  Later,  the  national  union  of  carpenters  was 
forced  to  amend  its  laws  so  as  to  permit  the  formation  of 
more  than  one  union  in  each  place;  and  today  over  sixteen 
local  unions  composed  wholly  of  negro  carpenters  are  to  be 
found  in  the  Southern  States. 

Friction  between  nationalities  has  led  to  further  subdivi- 
sion of  the  local  union  in  a  good  many  American  trades. 
The  Anthracite  Coal  Strike  Commission  found  some  nineteen 
nationalities  at  work  in  the  mines.  The  employees  of  the 
Colorado  Fuel  and  Iron  Company  include  representatives,  it 
is  said,  of  thirty-two  nationalities  speaking  twenty-seven 
different  languages.  In  the  meat  packing  houses  of  Chi- 
cago, Germans,  Bohemians,  Lithuanians,  Poles,  Slovaks, 
Italians,  and  Greeks  have  succeeded  one  another  in  bewil- 
dering succession.  Obviously,  to  organize  each  of  these 
many  races  into  separate  local  unions  is  frequently  impos- 
sible, and  national  trade  unions  whose  members  speak  many 
tongues  often  refuse  to  attempt  it.  Resort  is  had  to  var- 
ious expedients  in  order  that  business  may  be  transacted. 
Constitutions,  circulars,  and  other  documents  are  printed  in 
several  languages.  Interpreters  are  used  at  the  meetings  of 
the  local  unions ;  a  recording  secretary  is  sometimes  created 
for  each  language  spoken  by  the  members,  and  the  officers 
are  usually  divided  among  the  several  nationalities.  In  a 
few  instances  the  various  races  meet  in  adjoining  rooms,  and 
propositions  are  brought  successively  before  each  body. 
Such  makeshifts  are  inconvenient;  and,  when  race  antag- 
onism arises,  the  only  solution  is  the  subdivision  of  the  local. 

**  Report  of  the  General  Secretary,  in  Proceedings,  1884. 


135]  COMPOSITION    OF    THE    LOCAL    UNION  29 

Besides  general  race  antipathy,  ill-feeling  between  national- 
ities arises  in  various  ways.  In  the  late  seventies  a  union  of 
foreign  cigar  makers,  composed  of  Cubans,  Spaniards,  Mex- 
icans, and  Italians,  with  a  preponderance  of  the  Spanish  ele- 
ment, was  formed  in  New  York  City.  Shortly  afterwards, 
d'uring  the  public  agitation  in  favor  of  Cuban  liberty,  the 
members  began  to  discuss  current  political  questions,  with 
the  result  that  the  local  union  went  to  pieces."^ 

From  one  cause  or  another,  therefore,  each  of  the  several 
nationalities  working  at  a  trade  demands  a  separate  local 
union.  When,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Carpenters  or  Brick- 
layers, the  trade  is  only  slightly  subdivided,  separate  local 
unions  of  foreigners  can  be  readily  formed ;  but  in  the 
Amalgamated  Meat  Cutters  and  Butcher  Workmen  and  the 
United  Garment  Workers,  where  there  are  many  subdivi- 
sions, the  problem  becomes  more  difficult.  The  Butcher 
Workmen  recognize  no  distinctions  as  to  race  or  nationality. 
The  United  Garment  Workers  have  organized  in  Qiicago  a 
local  union  of  Italians  who  are  employed  as  pressmen,  pants 
finishers,  and  coat  makers;  and  when  the  number  of  work- 
ers in  one  branch  of  the  trade  is  great  enough  to  justify  fur- 
ther subdivision,  differences  of  nationality  are  sometimes 
recognized.  Obviously,  this  process  of  division  is  possible 
only  in  the  large  cities. 

A  local  union,  though  its  members  compose  a  compara- 
tively homogenous  group,  may  be  divided  because  it  has  be- 
come too  large  for  good  government.  If  the  number  of 
members  is  too  great,  the  meetings  degenerate  into  mob  as- 
semblages, and  intelligent  discussion  of  any  important  ques- 
tion is  difficult.  Men  who  advocate  a  sane  and  conservative 
policy  are  often  hissed  down.  Factions  are  inevitably  cre- 
ated, and  threaten  by  their  acrimonious  bickerings  to  disrupt 
the  organization. 

Unscrupulous  leaders  also  take  advantage  of  such  condi- 
tions to  establish  themselves  in  power.     In  the  days  of  Sam 

°  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  May,  1878,  p.  3. 


30  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [136 

Parks,  the  walking  delegate  of  the  Structural  Iron  Workers 
who  was  sent  to  Sing  Sing  Prison  for  blackmailing  employ- 
ers, there  was  only  one  local  union  of  structural  iron 
workers  in  New  York  City.  The  membership  was  nearly 
four  thousand,  and  meetings  were  held  in  a  small  hall  which 
seated  only  a  few  hundred.  Sam  Parks  built  up  a  small 
army  of  followers  by  using  the  power  which  his  position 
gave  over  employers  to  secure  the  jobs  as  foremen  and  other 
choice  positions  for  his  favorites.  When  he  desired  reelec- 
tion or  needed  a  vote  of  confidence,  he  would  order  his  ad- 
herents to  come  early.  The  room  would  be  packed  with 
men  who  voted  as  he  desired,  and  the  other  members  would 
fail  to  find  admittance.  A  somewhat  similar  condition  of 
things  has  at  times  existed  in  the  New  York  and  Chicago 
unions  of  bricklayers  and  in  other  large  local  unions  in  other 
trades.  For  example.  Local  Union  of  Bricklayers  No.  7  of 
New  York  City  had  in  1870  a  membership  of  two  thousand, 
and  met  in  a  hall  with  a  seating  capacity  of  three  hundred 
and  fifty.  There  were  several  factions  within  the  organiza- 
tion, and,  in  order  to  secure  the  adoption  of  a  particular 
measure,  one  clique  would  sometimes  pack  the  hall.  In  this 
way  a  minority  in  the  local  union  brought  about,  for  a  time, 
the  withdrawal  of  the  New  York  local  union  from  the  inter- 
national union. 

The  size  of  the  local  union  is  greatly  diminished  in  many 
organizations  by  division  according  to  branch  of  the  trade, 
sex,  color,  or  nationality.  For  example,  in  New  York  City 
the  local  union  of  structural  iron  workers  of  Sam  Parks's  day 
has  been  replaced  by  three  unions,  one  of  housesmiths  and 
bridge  men,  another  of  inside  architectural  bridge  and  struc- 
tural iron  workers,  and  a  third  of  finishers.  But  in  unions 
such  as  the  Bricklayers  and  the  Carpenters,  where  subdivi- 
sions according  to  trade,  sex,  color,  or  nationality  are  unim- 
portant, the  local  unions  are  very  frequently  too  large. 
The  international  secretary  of  the  Bricklayers  has  several 
times  proposed  to  prevent  the  growth  of  such  large  unions 
by  limiting  the  membership  of  each  local  union  to  five  hun- 


I37J  COMPOSITION    OF    THE    LOCAL    UNION  3 1 

dred.-*  A  rule  limiting  the  membership  of  each  subordinate 
association  to  four  hundred  was  adopted  by  the  United 
Brotherhood  of  Carpenters  in  1886.^'  The  provision 
proved  unsatisfactory,  however,  and  it  was  repealed  a  few 
years  later.  As  far,  then,  as  present  indications  show,  the 
general  tendency  seems  to  be  not  to  adopt  rigid  rules  as  to 
size,  but  to  create  additional  local  unions  in  any  community  as 
occasion  appears  to  demand. 

"  Annual  Report  of  the  President  and  Secretary,  for  term  ending 
December  i,  1890,  p.  47.  For  a  description  of  conditions  in  the 
Chicago  local  union  of  bricklayers,  see  Reports  of  the  President  and 
Secretary.  1886. 

"^  Constitution  and  Rules  for  Local  Unions,  1886. 


CHAPTER   III 

THE  FEDERATION  OF  LOCAL  UNIONS 

During  the  latter  half  of  the  nineteenth  century  the  local 
societies  of  organized  trades  have  as  a  rule  been  federated 
into  district,  state,  national,  and  international  unions.  The 
most  common  form  of  federal  association  is  the  interna- 
tional union  with  jurisdiction  over  subordinate  societies  in 
Canada  and  sometimes  even  in  Mexico  as  well  as  in  the 
United  States.  There  have  been  three  important  causes  of 
the  federation  of  local  trade  unions:  first,  the  movement 
of  workmen  from  one  city  to  another;  second,  the  com- 
petition between  manufacturers  in  diflferent  places;  and 
third,  the  need  of  a  joint  fund  for  the  support  of  certain 
trade-union  activities. 

Probably  the  chief  cause  of  the  federation  of  local  trade 
organizations  has  been  the  constant  movement  of  journey- 
men from  one  part  of  the  country  to  another.  This  form 
of  labor  competition  existed,  of  course,  from  the  birth  of 
American  trade  unionism,  and  in  1815  was  already  a  very 
serious  problem  to  the  local  societies  of  printers  which  had 
been  formed  by  that  date  in  all  the  large  cities  of  the  At- 
lantic seaboard.  One  writer,  discussing  the  movements  of 
the  working  population  in  1847,  just  a  few  years  before  the 
era  of  federal  unionism,  says  of  the  artisan  class  that  they 
too,  like  their  richer  neighbors,  "  must  sometimes  change 
their  place.  When  work  is  dull  in  one  town,  they  go  to  an- 
other, and  there  are  thus  two  streams  of  workmen  perpet- 
ually setting  between  our  two  great  cities,  while  in  a  smaller 
degree  a  similar  circulation  is  kept  up  through  the  whole 
country.  There  is  also  a  current  of  emigrants  to  the  west; 
and,  in  this,  there  is  always  a  considerable  infusion  of 
mechanical  labor."^ 

^J.  W.  Alexander,  The  American  Mechanic  and  Workingman, 
p.  108. 

32 


139]  FEDERi\TION    OF    LOCAL    UNIONS  33 

With  increased  rapidity  and  decreased  cost  of  railway 
transportation,  labor  has  become  continually  more  mobile. 
In  nearly  all  trades  there  is  a  class  of  travelling  craftsmen 
or  "tramp"  journeymen,  mostly  young  men,  who,  imbued 
with  the  modern  spirit  of  restlessness,  travel  from  place  to 
place,  and  work  for  a  few  weeks  or  months,  now  here,  now 
there,  as  fancy  or  the  hope  of  larger  wages  may  direct.  The 
amount  of  this  shifting  labor  is  especially  large  in  the  build- 
ing trades,  probably  because  of  the  intermittent  character  of 
the  work,  and  regularly  organized  gangs  move  constantly  to 
those  localities  where  building  operations  are  especially 
active.  A  few  years  ago  a  part  of  this  shifting  body  of 
laborers  may  have  been  at  work  on  the  buildings  of  the 
World's  Fair  in  St.  Louis.  Later,  they  were  employed  per- 
haps on  the  New  York  subway.  Then,  possibly,  the  build- 
ing operations  in  Baltimore's  burnt  district  attracted  them; 
and  still  later  they  may  have  been  engaged  on  the  buildings 
of  the  Jamestown  exposition  or  upon  the  reconstruction  of 
San  Francisco. 

Besides  the  labor  current  between  the  cities,  there  are 
smaller  eddies  from  the  country  and  the  small  towns  into  the 
large  cities,  and  vice  versa.  The  union  carpenters  in  large 
cities  for  years  have  complained  bitterly  of  periodic  inva- 
sions by  the  "  hatchet  and  saw  "  carpenters  from  the  sur- 
rounding country  and  the  small  outlying  towns.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  photo-engravers  in  the  small  towns  of  New 
England  and  of  New  York  State  fear  the  competition  of  the 
photo-engravers  coming  from  New  York  City,  who  are  in 
great  demand  on  account  of  their  superior  skill,  and  replace, 
even  at  considerably  higher  wages,  the  poorer  resident 
workmen. 

An  industrial  depression,  the  introduction  of  machinery, 
or  any  other  condition  which  increases  unemployment  or 
decreases  the  skill  required  serves  to  intensify  in  any  trade 
this  interurban  competition.  About  the  year  1880  wood- 
working machinery  was  introduced  in  planing  mills ;  and  as 
a  consequence  the  doors,  sash,  moldings,  window-frames, 
3 


34  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [14O 

and  other  fittings  which  the  carpenter  had  formerly  made  by 
hand  in  his  workshop  were  now  made  by  machinery  in  the 
factory.  Consequently,  in  every  large  city  there  was  cre- 
ated a  small  army  of  idle  members  of  the  trade,  ready  to 
"  scab  "  in  their  own  or  other  towns.-  At  the  same  time  the 
work  of  the  carpenter  on  a  building  had  been  minutely  sub- 
divided. For  this  reason  the  annual  influx  of  relatively  un- 
skilled country  carpenters  assumed  large  proportions. 

This  movement  of  workmen  from  one  place  to  another 
handicaps  the  local  union  greatly  in  its  efforts  to  improve 
the  conditions  of  employment.  Frequently  when  a  local 
union  has  succeeded  in  raising  wages  above  the  general  level, 
union  and  non-union  members  of  the  trade  in  other  cities 
who  hear  of  it  rush  to  the  place,  and  by  their  underbidding 
force  down  wages  possibly  below  their  original  level.^ 
"  Take  the  case  of  the  journeymen  tailors,"  says  a  writer  in 
1847.  "  Suppose  this  class  of  operators  in  Newark  to  strike 
for  higher  wages,  and  to  succeed.  Journeymen  tailors  will 
be  at  once  tempted  to  flow  from  New  York,  and  this  influx 
will  be  in  proportion  to  the  general  distress;  and  secondly, 
to  the  amount  of  increasing  remuneration.  Of  course  it 
will  be  less  than  it  would  be  in  the  case  of  unskilled  labor, 
such  as  that  of  the  piecers  and  pickers  in  cotton  factories, 
where  the  vacuum  would  be  filled  up  almost  immediately. 
The  consequence  of  this  transfer  of  labor  is  that  wages  rise 
elsewhere,  and  by  degrees  fall  here.  After  a  short  time,  the 
proportion  is  much  what  it  had  been ;  and  the  general  rise 
of  level  is  scarcely  appreciable."* 

Sometimes  local  unions  engaged  in  industrial  war  have 
discovered  unexpectedly  that  their  strike  is  lost  because  the 
employers  have  been  able  by  advertisements  to  secure  from 
other  cities  journeymen  who  were  willing  to  act  as  strike 
breakers.  The  master  printers  of  New  York  pursued  this 
policy  as  early  as  1809,  advertising  in  Boston,  Philadelphia, 


'  The  Carpenter,  October,  1886. 

*  Historical  Sketch,  in  Constitution  of  the  New  York  Typograph- 
ical Association  of  June,  1831,  as  amended  in  1833. 
^Alexander,  p.  127. 


141]  FEDERATION    OF    LOCAL    UNIONS  35 

and  other  cities  for  journeymen  to  fill  the  places  of  the  strik- 
ing members  of  the  New  York  Typographical  Society.^ 
Sooner  or  later  in  all  trades,  therefore,  the  federation  of 
the  local  societies  has  been  urged  as  a  means  of  preventing 
competition  for  employment  between  unionists  in  different 
cities.  In  the  spring  of  1881  the  loss  of  a  strike  because 
of  the  influx  of  out-of-town  workers  led  the  three  local 
unions  of  carpenters  and  joiners  in  St.  Louis  to  agitate  for 
the  creation  of  a  national  union  of  the  trade.  A  provisional 
committee  elected  by  the  three  local  unions  began  the  pub- 
lication of  a  journal  which  was  sent  broadcast  throughout 
the  country  as  a  means  of  spreading  the  arguments  in  favor 
of  a  national  union.  As  a  result  of  this  campaign,  the 
United  Brotherhood  of  Carpenters  and  Joiners  of  America 
was  formed  shortly  afterwards.^ 

The  movement  of  journeymen  from  place  to  place  neu- 
tralizes the  efforts  of  the  independent  local  societies  to  con- 
trol the  supply  of  workers  by  limiting  the  number  of  those 
learning  the  craft.  For  example,  a  union  in  Baltimore  may 
enforce  the  most  rigid  rules  for  defining  the  period  of  ap- 
prenticeship and  the  number  of  apprentices  to  each  shop; 
but  if  the  imions  of  the  craft  in  Philadelphia  and  Washing- 
ton have  a  lax  apprentice  system,  probably  the  only  result 
will  be  that  Baltimore  will  serve  as  a  convenient  outlet  for 
the  constantly  accumulating  body  of  unemployed  in  both 
cities.  The  need  of  some  national  regulation  of  apprentice- 
ship, therefore,  has  been  another  cause  for  the  federation  of 
local  unions.  The  adoption  of  a  series  of  uniform  appren- 
tice rules  for  local  societies  was  an  important  work  of  the 
national  conventions  of  printers  which  in  1836  and  1837 
made  an  unsuccessful  attempt  to  establish  a  national  union.'^ 
In  the  address  to  journeymen  printers,  issued  in  1851,  one 
argument  urged  in  favor  of  establishing  a  national  organiza- 
tion was  the  need  of  limiting  apprentices,  "  by  which  meas- 

"*  Bulletin  of  the  Bureau  of  Labor,  no.  61,  November,  1905,  p.  873. 
"  The  Carpenter.  May,  1881. 

'Address  to  Local  Societies  by  the  Convention  of  the  National 
Typographical  Society  in  1836.    Washington,  1836. 


• 


36  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [142 

ure,  a  too  rapid  increase  in  the  number  of  workmen,  too 
little  care  in  the  selection  of  boys  for  the  business,  and  the 
employment  of  herds  of  half  men  at  half  wages  to  the  detri- 
ment of  good  workmen  would  be  effectively  prevented."^ 
The  national  regulation  of  apprenticeship  was  from  the  be- 
ginning an  important  purpose  of  the  federal  unions  of  iron 
molders^  and  cigar  makers,^*'  and  a  rule  limiting  the  num- 
ber of  apprentices  was  adopted  by  the  International  Union 
of  Bricklayers  as  early  as  1867.^^ 

As  long  as  the  local  societies  of  a  trade  are  not  united, 
the  member  suspended  for  non-payment  of  dues  or  for 
some  other  violation  of  the  union  rules  is  able  to  escape 
his  penalty  by  travelling  to  another  city.  There,  upon  pay- 
ment of  an  initiation  fee,  he  will  probably  be  admitted  to 
the  union  of  the  locality,  and  so  will  be  able  to  find  em- 
ployment. Under  such  circumstances  the  threat  of  suspen- 
sion loses  some  of  its  terror  for  the  delinquent,  and  much 
of  the  coercive  power  of  the  union  over  its  members  is 
destroyed.  The  effective  punishment  of  outlawed  members 
has  been  an  incidental  purpose  in  the  organization  of  federal 
trade  unions.  Some  years  before  the  rise  of  a  national 
union  the  scattered  societies  of  printers  exchanged  lists  of 
"  rats,"  as  offenders  against  the  union  were  called,  and  by 
general  agreement  all  local  unions  refused  to  admit  such 
individuals  to  membership.^-  The  address  of  1850  to  the 
printers  of  the  United  States  advanced,  as  another  argu- 
ment in  favor  of  the  establishment  of  a  national  union,  the 
possibility  of  adopting  "measures  to  prevent  disgraced 
members  of  the  profession  enjoying  anywhere  in  the  United 
States  those  privileges  which  belong  exclusively  to  honor- 

*  Address  Issued  by  the  Convention  of  1850  to  the  Journeymen 
Printers  of  the  United  States. 

*  Constitution,  1864,  art.  viii,  in  Proceedings,  1864.  See  also  Pro- 
ceedings, 1867. 

^"Constitution  for  the  Government  of  Local  Unions,  art.  ii,  sec.  i, 
in  MS.  Proceedings  of  the  Second  Session  of  the  Cigar  Makers' 
International  Union,  1865. 

"  Constitution  and  Rules  of  Order,  1867. 

"  See  page  104. 


143]  FEDERATION    OF    LOCAL    UNIONS  37 

able  printers."^^  At  an  early  date  the  federal  organizations 
of  iron  molders,  bricklayers,  locomotive  firemen,  and  many 
other  crafts  published  in  their  trade  journals,  or  exchanged 
by  correspondence  between  the  local  unions,  lists  of  expelled 
members  whom  all  subordinate  branches  were  forbidden  to 
admit. 

On  the  other  hand,  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  travell- 
ing journeyman  some  agreement  between  the  scattered  local 
unions  of  a  trade  is  desirable,  in  order  that  he  may  be  ad- 
mitted more  readily  to  the  union  of  the  place  in  which  he 
hopes  to  find  work.  The  ardent  unionist  is  often  unable  to 
pay  the  high  initiation  fee  required  for  membership  in  the 
association  of  the  place  to  which  he  has  journeyed  in  search 
of  work.  Consequently,  he  turns  "  scab,"  and  accepts  a  much 
lower  wage  than  he  had  previously  earned,  or,  if  the  local 
union  is  strong,  does  not  find  employment.  The  address  to 
journeymen  printers  issued  in  1850  declared  that  "the  for- 
mation of  a  national  union  of  printers  will  relieve  the  dis- 
tress of  brother  craftsmen,  incurred  in  journeying  from  one 
place  to  another  in  search  of  work."  "  One  reason,"  says 
a  writer  in  the  Iron  Molders'  International  Journal,  "  for 
the  formation  of  a  national  union  was  that  the  right  hand 
of  fellowship  might  be  extended  to  a  molder  everywhere  in 
his  wanderings."^*  The  same  idea  was  also  expressed  by 
the  delegates  who  met  in  1864  to  form  the  Cigar  ^lakers' 
International  Union. ^^  The  invariable  policy  of  national  as- 
sociations of  admitting  members  of  one  subordinate  union  to 
all  other  subordinate  unions  without  an  initiation  fee  has 
greatly  benefitted  the  "tramp"  journeyman,  and  so  also  has 
the  system  of  loans  to  those  travelling  in  search  of  work, 
which  some  seventeen  of  the  one  hundred  and  thirty  or 
more  federal  trade  organizations  in  the  United  States  are 
maintaining.^*' 

"Address  Issued  by  the  Convention  of  1850  to  the  Journeymen 
Printers  of  the  United  States. 

"International  Journal   [Iron  Molders],  May,  1871. 

^^  MS.  Proceedings  of  Convention  of  the  Cigar  Makers' Union,  1864. 

^^  J.  B._  Kennedy,  "  Beneficiary  Features  of  American  Trade 
Unions,"  in  Johns  Hopkins  University  Studies,  ser.  xxvi,  nos  11-12, 
p.  96. 


38  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [l44 

A  second  important  cause  of  the  federation  of  local  soci- 
eties lias  been  the  need  of  keeping  wages  and  other  condi- 
tions of  employment  affecting  cost  of  production  uniform 
in  competing  establishments.  A  typical  illustration  is 
afforded  by  the  boot  and  shoe  industry.  Except  for  certain 
popular  high-grade  shoes,  competition  between  manufac- 
turers of  footwear  in  various  parts  of  the  country  has  re- 
duced profits  to  a  very  small  amount.  At  the  same  time, 
one  trust,  by  means  of  its  ownership  of  patents,  has  been 
able  to  control  the  price  of  shoe  machinery,  and  another 
trust,  aided  until  recently  by  a  prohibitive  tariff  on  hides, 
has  been  able  to  fix  the  price  of  leather.  Moreover,  methods 
of  production  are  very  much  the  same  in  all  parts  of  the 
country.  The  most  important  variable  element  in  the  cost 
of  production  is,  therefore,  wages;  and  a  difference  of  a 
few  cents  per  piece  in  several  departments  of  a  factory,  or 
possibly  even  in  a  single  department,  may  make  the  differ- 
ence between  ruin  and  a  prosperous  business.^'^  Therefore, 
the  boot  and  shoe  manufacturer  resists  desperately  any  at- 
tempt of  a  local  union  to  raise  wages.  If  the  union  is 
strong  and  he  is  forced  to  yield,  he  may  be  compelled 
through  the  falling  off  of  sales  to  shut  down  his  plant  or 
reduce  his  working  force. 

The  independent  local  unions  have  great  difficulty  not 
only  in  raising  wages,  but  also  in  preventing  them  from 
falling  in  sympathy  with  reductions  in  other  places.  An 
employer  calls  together  his  employees,  and  informs  them 
that  his  rivals  in  other  cities  are  driving  him  out  of  business. 
If  he  continues  to  pay  the  same  wages  as  before,  he  will  be 
compelled,  he  tells  them,  to  shut  down  his  plant,  certainly 
during  the  dull  season.  If,  however,  they  will  submit  to 
a  ten  per  cent  reduction,  he  will  be  able  to  sell  his  shoes, 
coal,  iron,  or  whatever  the  commodity  may  be  some  cents 
cheaper,  and  will  secure  certain  large  contracts  for  goods. 
The  men,  he  declares,  will  lose  nothing  by  the  reduction. 
The  factory  will  continue  to  run  at  full  time,  and  some  may 

"  The  Union  Boot  and  Shoe  Worker,  April,  1900,  p.  10. 


145]  FEDERATION    OF    LOCAL    UNIONS  39 

even  recover  the  lost  wages  by  working  overtime.  His 
employees  in  all  probability  yield,  and  then  his  competitors, 
who  find  themselves  losing  trade,  propose  in  turn  a  reduc- 
tion to  their  men,  and  so  the  movement  spreads.^*  "  The 
indiscriminate  cutting  of  miners'  wages  in  one  place  is 
often  followed  by  sympathetic  reductions  in  distant  regions," 
said  the  secretary  of  the  Miners  of  Western  Pennsylvania 
when  proposing  an  interstate  federation  of  miners  in  1883.^^ 
Indeed,  even  in  recent  years  the  reductions  in  the  rate  of 
wages  paid  in  the  bituminous  district  of  West  Virginia,  a 
region  wdiich  the  United  Mine  Workers  of  America  have 
never  been  able  to  organize  thoroughly,  have  repeatedly 
tended  to  lower  the  scale  maintained  in  the  other  bituminous 
coal  fields,  particularly  in  Ohio  and  western  Pennsylvania.-'' 
In  some  industries,  however,  competition  does  not  exist 
between  employers  in  different  localities,  and  hence  it  has 
not  been  a  cause  of  the  creation  of  national  trade  unions. 
There  is  no  such  interurban  competition,  for  example,  in 
industries  where  workers  such  as  barbers,  retail  clerks,  hotel 
and  restaurant  employees,  theatrical  stage  employees,  and 
street  railway  employees  perform  a  personal  service,  nor 
where  workers  such  as  bakers  and  confectioners  produce 
an  article  for  local  consumption.  In  the  latter  class  may 
also  be  included  members  of  the  building  trades,  though  in 
recent  years  large  construction  companies  have  come  into 
existence  which  bid  for  contracts  in  many  places  and  send 
a  part  of  their  permanent  body  of  employees  to  do  the 
work.2^  The  competition  between  contractors  in  different 
cities  is,  however,  still  very  limited  in  amount.  IMoreover, 
at  the  time  when  the  international  unions  of  bricklayers,  car- 
penters, painters,  plumbers,  and  other  of  the  building  trades 
were  organized  such  competition  did  not  exist,  and  hence  it 

"For  example,  see  description  of  conditions  in  the  iron  and  steel 
industry,  in  National  Labor  Tribune,  May  7.  1874,  p.  2. 

"  National  Labor  Tribune,  January  13,  1883,  p.  5. 

**  United  Mine  Workers'  Journal,  June  9,  1892;  April  13.  1893. 

"When  a  company  obtains  a  contract  in  a  place  where  the  wage 
scale  is  lower  than  that  paid  to  their  own  employees,  it  sometimes 
hires  local  journeymen  to  do  the  work  in  such  places,  but  this  prac- 
tice is  vigorously  opposed  by  the  union. 


40  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [146 

exercised  no  influence  upon  the  formation  of  such  associa- 
tions. 

Not  only  wages,  but  the  length  of  the  working  day, 
methods  of  wage  payment,  and  many  other  items  in  the  con- 
tract for  employment  affect  the  cost  of  production.  Such 
abuses  as  the  truck  system  and  the  screen  system,  for 
example,  have  been  retained  even  by  scrupulous  coal  oper- 
ators in  order  to  meet  the  competition  of  less  conscientious 
employers  who  insist  upon  continuing  such  practices ;  and 
they  can  be  abolished  only  by  the  combined  efforts  of  all 
miners'  local  unions  in  the  country.  Thus,  about  1883,  one 
of  the  districts  of  Ohio  went  on  strike  against  the  screen 
system,  whereupon  the  president  of  the  state  organization  of 
miners  issued  a  circular  ordering  the  strikers  to  return  to 
work,  since  the  screen  system  could  be  abolished  only  by  the 
cooperative  action  of  the  various  state  unions. ^- 

The  desire  to  secure  uniformity  in  wages,  hours,  and  other 
conditions  of  employment  which  directly  or  indirectly  affect 
cost  of  production  has  been  a  primary  cause  for  the  creation 
of  many  national  and  international  unions.  In  the  address 
to  journeymen  printers  of  the  United  States,  issued  by  the 
preliminary  national  convention  of  Printers  held  in  1850, 
"  an  understanding  in  the  regulation  of  scales  of  prices  in 
different  localities  so  that  those  in  one  place  may  not  be 
permitted  to  become  so  comparatively  high  as  to  induce 
work  to  be  sent  elsewhere  "  is  suggested  as  one  aim  of  the 
proposed  national  union.  The  Window  Glass  Workers, 
when  issuing  a  call  for  their  first  national  convention  in 
1874,  urged  the  need  of  a  uniform  sliding  scale  for  all  win- 
dow glass  factories  as  the  chief  reason  for  creating  a  na- 
tional union.-^  The  establishment  of  a  uniform  rate  of 
wages  was  a  primary  aim  of  the  men  who  formed  the  New 
England  Boot  and  Shoe  Cutters'  Union,^*  the  New  England 
Lasters'  Protective  Association,^^  and  the  International  Boot 

"  National  Labor  Tribune,  December  I,  1883,  p.  5. 

^  Ibid.,  May  23,  1874,  p.  i. 

•*  The  Laster,  October  15,  1890,  p.  i. 

'=  Ibid.,  August  IS,  1888,  p.  I. 


147]  FEDERATION    OF    LOCAL    UNIONS  4 1 

and  Shoe  Workers'  Union,  though  such  uniformity  has  not 
been  attained  even  at  the  present  day. 

Uniform  regulation  of  the  terms  of  the  labor  contract  was 
the  chief  reason  for  the  formation  of  district  federations 
by  the  anthracite  coal  miners  of  Pennsylvania-"  and  by  the 
bituminous  miners  of  western  Pennsylvania.  The  latter 
district  included  all  collieries  situated  upon  railroads  or 
rivers  by  which  coal  was  brought  to  the  Pittsburg  market. 
The  Miners'  National  Association,  formed  in  1873,  made  no 
attempt  to  maintain  uniform  conditions  of  employment, 
since  at  that  time  each  coal  district  had  its  own  exclusive 
market,  and  mines  in  one  district  did  not  compete  with  those 
in  another.  The  market  for  coal  soon  became  national, 
however,  and  the  abolition  of  the  screen  system  of  wage 
payment  and  the  establishment  of  an  eight-hour  day  and 
other  rules  of  employment  were  stated  as  leading  purposes 
in  calling  the  national  convention  of  the  trade  in  1880-'  and 
1883.-*  Moreover,  the  creation  of  a  permanent,  stable  na- 
tional organization  among  the  miners  really  dates  from  the 
first  joint  conference  of  miners  and  operators  which  in  1886 
drew  up  the  first  joint  wage  scale  for  the  bituminous  coal 
fields  of  Indiana,  Illinois,  Ohio,  Pennsylvania,  West  Vir- 
ginia, and  a  small  section  of  Iowa.-® 

The  miners  have  sometimes  attempted  to  limit  the  output 
of  coal  in  the  hope  that  by  raising  its  price  they  would 
secure  higher  w^ages  from  employers.  To  be  effective,  the 
output  of  all  competing  collieries  must  be  limited,  and  for 
this  purpose  the  several  county  associations  of  the  anthra- 
cite coal  miners  of  Pennsylvania  federated  together  about 
1869.  A  National  Nut  Coal  Restriction  Convention  was 
called  in  1880,  but  it  failed  in  its  aim  because  certain  state 
associations    in    the    Middle    West    refused    to    cooperate. 


^  The  county  associations  among  the  anthracite  coal  miners  grew 
out  of  an  attempt  to  establish  an  eight-hour  day  at  all  competing 
collieries  (First  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics  of  Labor 
and  Agriculture  for  the  Commonwealth  of  Pennsylvania,  1872-3). 

"National  Labor  Tribune,  March  2-7,  1880,  p.  i. 

"Ibid.,  May  26,  1883,  p.  5. 

^  See  page  loi. 


42  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [H^ 

Similarly,  the  regulation  of  the  pro  rata  production  of  glass 
throughout  the  United  States  was  enumerated  as  one  of  the 
purposes  for  calling  the  first  national  convention  of  window 
glass  workers  in  1874.^" 

A  third  important  reason  for  the  federation  of  local  socie- 
ties has  been  the  need  of  a  joint  fund  from  which  to  pay- 
strike,  sick,  death,  disability,  and  out-of-work  benefits. 
Such  a  joint  fund  has  been  greatly  needed  to  support  the 
members  of  a  local  union  involved  in  a  strike.  If  a  strike 
has  behind  it  the  financial  resources  of  all  the  local  unions 
of  a  trade,  amounting  perhaps  to  a  hundred  thousand  dollars, 
it  has  obviously  much  more  chance  of  success  than  when 
supported  by  only  one  local  union  with  perhaps  fifteen 
hundred  dollars  in  its  treasury.  With  a  hundred  thousand 
dollars  instead  of  fifteen  hundred  dollars  to  draw  upon,  the 
members  involved  in  a  difficulty  with  employers  can  be  sup- 
ported for  a  much  longer  time.  "  Scabs  "  can  also  be  bought 
off  and  kept  from  taking  the  places  of  the  strikers. 

The  need  of  a  central  strike  fund  was  urged  as  a  reason 
for  calling  the  first  national  convention  of  window  glass 
workers  in  1874.^^  The  same  argument  was  advanced  by 
the  committee  of  the  St.  Louis  local  union  of  carpenters 
which  brought  about  the  formation  of  a  national  union  of 
the  trade  in  1881.^^  Both  the  National  Typographical  So- 
ciety of  1836  and  the  national  convention  of  journeymen 
printers  held  in  1850  urged  that  the  several  societies  of  the 
trade  cooperate  to  aid  local  imions  involved  in  strikes.  In- 
deed, the  payment  of  strike  benefits  has  been  recognized 
very  generally  as  an  important  function  of  national  trade 
unions,  but  the  system  has  been  very  slowly  established  by 
the  workers  in  those  industries  where  the  size  of  the  es- 

*°  National  Labor  Tribune,  May  23,  1874,  p.  i.  The  national  asso- 
ciations of  both  window  glass  workers  and  flint  glass  workers  have 
pursued  the  policy  of  suspending  work  in  all  factories  during  a 
portion  of  the  summer  months,  partly  in  order  that  necessary  re- 
pairs may  be  made  during  the  hot  season,  but  largely  in  the  hope 
of  securing  steadier  employment  at  higher  wages  during  the  winter 
months. 

*"  National  Labor  Tribune,  May,  1874. 

"-  The  Carpenter,  May,  1881. 


149]  FEDERATION    OF    LOCAL    UNIONS  43 

tablishment  is  small  and  hence  where  a  strike  involves  only  a 
small  part  of  the  membership  of  a  local  union.  For  this 
reason  a  joint  strike  fund  was  not  created  by  the  Printers 
until  1885,  notwithstanding  that  a  resolution  favoring  the 
maintenance  of  such  a  fund  was  adopted  at  the  first  national 
convention.  The  small  local  unions  demanded  repeatedly 
during  this  interval  that  they  be  aided  by  the  international 
union  in  their  struggles  with  employers,  but  the  large  local 
unions,  wdio  were  better  able  to  finance  their  own  strikes, 
always  opposed  the  plan.  For  the  same  reason  the  amounts 
contributed  to  local  unions  from  the  treasuries  of  the  na- 
tional unions  of  the  building  trades  have  been  inadequate, 
and  strikes  have  been  largely  supported  from  local  funds. 
With  the  rise  of  employers'  associations  in  the  building 
trades  and  in  the  printing  industry,  however,  strikes  not 
infrequently  involve  nearly  all  the  members  of  a  local  union, 
and  to  maintain  them  the  local  union  must  receive  financial 
help  from  the  international  union. 

The  payment  of  sick,  death,  or  out-of-work  benefits  from 
the  federal  rather  than  the  local  treasury  is  urged  for  two 
reasons.  In  the  first  place,  wdien  each  subordinate  union 
maintains  its  own  system  of  benefits,  a  member  forfeits  the 
right  to  enjoy  them  whenever  he  travels  to  another  city  in 
search  of  work,  for  even  if  the  union  in  the  city  to  which 
he  journeys  does  pay  benefits  of  identical  amounts  and 
character,  a  new  member  must  usually  be  a  member  for  six 
months  or  a  year  before  he  becomes  entitled  to  receive  them. 
In  the  second  place,  only  the  large  local  unions  are  able  to 
maintain  systems  of  benevolent  relief.  A  single  death  dur- 
ing the  first  year  would  probably  bankrupt  the  small  union 
of  ten  or  twenty  members. 

Insurance  against  death  and  accident  has  always  been  an 
important  feature  of  all  railway  unions  because  of  the  high 
premiums  charged  railway  employees  by  the  insurance  com- 
panies, and  undoubtedly  the  desire  for  a  national  system 
of  insurance  exerted  some  influence  upon  the  formation  of 
national  organizations  in  certain  branches  of  the  service. 


44  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [15O 

The  Grand  Division  of  the  Order  of  Railway  Conductors, 
for  example,  formed  a  mutual  insurance  association  at  its 
first  convention  in  1868.  The  Order  of  Railroad  Teleg- 
raphers was  organized  in  1886  as  a  purely  benevolent  na- 
tional association,  and  continued  as  such  until  1891,  when 
its  laws  were  so  amended  as  to  make  it  also  an  industrially 
protective  union.^^  The  present  international  organization 
of  railway  firemen  was  preceded  by  the  International  Fire- 
men's Union,  whose  sole  function  was  to  promote  collective 
bargaining.  Many  lodges  desired  the  adoption  of  a  system 
of  national  insurance;  and  as  the  leaders  of  the  old  asso- 
ciation refused  to  accede  to  their  demands,  some  of  them 
seceded  in  1874  to  form  the  present  Brotherhood  of  Loco- 
motive Firemen,  which  has  benevolent  as  well  as  industrial 
aims.^* 

The  desire  to  pay  sick,  death,  and  out-of-work  benefits 
has,  however,  exerted  relatively  little  influence  upon  the 
creation  of  district,  state,  or  national  vniions.  In  fact,  with 
the  exception  of  certain  railway  brotherhoods,  none  of  the 
early  federal  associations  adopted  systems  of  benevolent 
relief  until  some  years  after  their  formation.  Although 
the  Iron  Holders'  International  Union  was  organized  in 
1859,  its  first  beneficiary  feature — the  payment  of  a  cer- 
tain sum  upon  the  death  of  a  member — was  not  adopted 
until  about  1878.^^  The  Cigar  Makers'  International  Union 
was  organized  in  1864.  In  1873  the  so-called  endowment 
plan  for  the  relief  of  widows  and  orphans  was  inaugurated, 
but  proved  a  failure  and  was  abandoned  a  year  later.  Not, 
indeed,  until  1880  were  the  sick  and  death  benefits  which  are 
today  such  important  features  of  the  organization  perman- 
ently established.^*'  Moreover,  sixty-two  out  of  one  hun- 
dred and  thirty-four  national  and  international  unions  are 

^American  Federationist,  September,  1902,  p.  621. 

^*  The  history  of  the  struggle  between  the  two  international  asso- 
ciations of  locomotive  firemen  can  be  traced  in  the  contemporary 
numbers  of  the  Locomotive  Firemen's  Magazine,  vols,  i  and  ii,  De- 
cember, 1876-November.  1878. 

^  Constitution  and  Rules  of  Order,  1878. 

''Journal  and  Program  of  the  Twentieth  Convention,  1893,  p.  53. 


151]  FEDERATION    OF    LOCAL    UNIONS  45 

not  maintaining  any  form  of  benevolent  relief  at  the  present 
time. 

Before  local  societies  began  to  federate  into  national  and 
international  trade  unions  there  was  a  long  period  of  grop- 
ing and  experiment  during  which  the  scattered  societies 
endeavored  to  cooperate  by  correspondence.  Many  years 
prior  to  the  formation  of  a  national  association  of  the  trade 
the  union  hatter  who  left  Danbury,  Connecticut,  in  search 
of  work  at  some  nearby  town  bore  with  him  a  travelling 
card,  which  by  agreement  entitled  him  to  membership  in 
unions  of  hatters  in  other  places  without  the  payment  of  an 
initiation  fee.  So  also  today,  though  the  local  unions  of 
female  hat  trimmers  have  not  yet  federated,  one  local  union 
of  hat  trimmers  recognizes  the  card  presented  by  the  mem- 
ber of  a  sister  society. 

The  early  associations  of  printers  were  very  successful  in 
their  efforts  to  cooperate  with  one  another.  In  the  first 
place,  by  means  of  an  active  correspondence,  union  printers 
were  prevented  from  flocking  to  cities  where  members  of 
a  sister  society  were  engaged  in  a  strike.  When  in  1809,  for 
example,  the  master  printers  of  New  York  advertised  in 
other  cities  for  journeymen,  oft'ering  good  wages  and  per- 
manent positions,  the  New  York  Typographical  Society 
wrote  to  the  other  organizations  in  the  trade  that  its  mem- 
bers were  on  strike  for  higher  wages,  and  that  the  pur- 
pose of  such  advertisements  was  "  to  fill  the  city  with  hands, 
and  thereby  reduce  the  prices  of  work  in  this  city  to  their 
former  standard."  In  1810  the  Philadelphia  society  notified 
the  New  York  organization  in  its  turn  that  its  members 
were  about  to  strike  in  order  to  enforce  a  new  wage  scale. 
In  response,  the  New  York  union  called  a  special  meeting, 
and  all  present  agreed  by  resolution  not  to  take  "  any  situa- 
tion vacated  by  any  of  our  brethren  in  Philadelphia  under 
the  present  circumstances."  Again,  on  the  eve  of  a  strike  in 
1816  the  Boston  Typographical  Society  sent  a  letter  to  all 
printers'  unions  in  the  country  requesting  that  members  of 


46  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [152 

the  trade  in  other  cities  should  not  come  to  Boston  in  answer 
to  advertisements  for  journeymen,  and  so  endanger  the 
success  of  the  strike.  The  blackHst  of  suspended  or  ex- 
pelled members  kept  at  the  present  day  by  most  national  and 
international  unions  had  its  prototype  in  the  list  of  "  rats  " 
or  outlawed  members  exchanged  by  these  early  associations 
of  printers. 

The  independent  printers'  societies  attempted  also  to  bring 
into  uniformity  the  scales  of  wages  paid  in  different  cities.^^ 
In  18 1 5  the  master  printers  of  New  York  opposed  the  de- 
mand of  their  journeymen  for  higher  wages  on  the  ground 
that  the  resulting  increase  in  the  cost  of  printing  would 
lead  the  New  York  booksellers  to  have  their  work  done  in 
places  where  wages  were  lower.  Thereupon  the  New  York 
society  appointed  a  committee  to  induce  the  journeymen  of 
other  cities,  and  of  Philadelphia  and  Albany  in  particular, 
to  raise  their  wages  to  the  level  of  the  New  York  scale. 
Probably  in  part  through  the  efforts  of  this  committee  a 
higher  scale  of  wages  was  adopted  within  a  short  time  by 
the  Albany  union.  The  wages  of  printers  employed  on 
government  work  in  Washington  were  higher  than  those 
paid  in  other  cities,  and  in  consequence,  during  the  sessions 
of  Congress,  Washington  became  the  Mecca  of  "tramp" 
printers  from  all  sections  of  the  United  States.  The  Colum- 
bia Typographical  Society  of  Washington  desired,  there- 
fore, that  wages  be  uniform  in  all  parts  of  the  country. 
In  1815  the  society  adopted  a  "list  of  prices  similar  to  that 
in  Baltimore  in  order  that  wage  conditions  might  be  brought 
into  uniformity  with  those  existing  in  the  nearest  important 
city."3» 

The  establishment  of  a  central  organization  to  carry  out 
more  effectively  the  activities  which  the  local  unions  had 

^  In  1S06  the  scale  of  wages  for  union  boot-  and  shoemakers  was 
the  same  in  Baltimore,  Philadelphia,  and  New  York,  but  apparently 
no  definite  agreement  to  maintain  such  uniformity  existed  between 
the  associations  of  the  trade  in  the  three  cities  (Trial  of  the  Boot 
and  Shoemakers  of  Philadelphia  on  an  Indictment  for  a  Combina- 
tion and  Conspiracy  to  Raise  their  Wages.    Philadelphia,  1806.    P.  51). 

^  Bulletin  of  the  Bureau  of  Labor,  no.  61,  November,  1905,  pp. 
836-1033. 


153]  FEDERATION    OF    LOCAL    UNIONS  47 

maintained  with  partial  success  by  correspondence  was  an 
easy  step,  and  the  printers'  societies  which  had  corresponded 
so  vigorously  were  naturally  the  first  to  take  the  step. 
Indeed,  the  New  York  Typographical  Society  is  said  to  have 
proposed  a  confederation  of  local  printers'  organizations  as 
early  as  1816;  but  concerning  the  truth  of  this  statement 
nothing  definite  is  known.  Correspondence  between  the 
printers'  societies  practically  ceased  during  the  suspension 
of  their  trade  activities  from  1818  to  1828;^'*  but  after  1828, 
when  the  Printers  grew  aggressive  and  attempted  to  bar- 
gain collectively,  cooperation  between  the  societies  began 
again,  and  this  cooperation  soon  led  to  suggestions  for  a 
closer  alliance.  In  1836  a  "union  of  societies"  known  as 
the  National  Typographical  Society  was  formed  to  carry  on 
the  various  activities  hitherto  inadequately  maintained  by 
correspondence,  but  this  federal  organization  died  within 
two  years.  Undoubtedly  other  trades  attempted  about  this 
time  to  form  national  unions.  Thus,  at  a  meeting  of  the 
Journeymen  House  Carpenters'  Association  of  Philadelphia, 
in  1836,  a  resolution  was  adopted  "that  a  National  Conven- 
tion of  Carpenters  be  called  to  meet  at  Philadelphia  on  the 
fourth  Monday  of  October  ensuing."***  But  after  the  utter 
prostration  of  the  labor  movement  in  the  panic  of  1836, 
attempts  to  form  national  unions  were  discontinued. 

The  period  of  railway  construction  brought  about  a  great 
industrial  change  toward  the  middle  of  the  century.  Lines 
of  railroad  now  spanned  many  sections  of  the  country,  and 
in  general  the  means  of  communication  by  land  and  water 
had  been  greatly  developed ;  in  consequence  the  mobility  of 
labor  had  increased,  and  goods  sought  a  market  of  ever 
widening  territorial  extent.  Hence  the  need  of  national 
collective  bargaining  became  more  imperative,  and  after  1850 
the  number  of  national  trade  unions  steadily  increased.  If, 
therefore,  the  first  half  of  the  century  is  styled  the  period  of 
local  unionism,  the  second  half  may  by  contrast  be  called  the 

**G.  E.  Barnett,  The  Printers,  in  American  Economic  Association 
Quarterly,  ser.  3,  vol.  x,  no.  3.  p.  21. 
*"  The  Washingtonian,  October  17,  1S36. 


48  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [l54 

period  of  national  or  federal  unionism.  Trades  which  had 
been  most  active  in  the  labor  movement  of  the  first  half 
of  the  century  naturally  took  the  lead  in  the  creation  of 
national  associations.  The  Printers  renewed  the  effort  made 
in  1836,  and  after  two  preliminary  conventions  formed  the 
National  Typographical  Union,  the  first  permanent  federal 
trade  union  in  the  United  States.  The  example  of  the 
Printers  was  followed  within  a  couple  of  years  by  the 
Hatters  and  by  the  members  of  a  few  other  trades  which 
had  been  foremost  in  the  creation  of  local  unions  during  the 
early  part  of  the  century. 

Workers  in  the  textile,  iron  and  steel,  glass,  and  other 
industries  which  had  scarcely  existed  or  which  remained 
unorganized  during  the  early  period  now  began  to  form 
local  societies,  and  in  those  where  the  product  had  a  wide 
territorial  market  the  creation  of  national  associations  fol- 
lowed almost  immediately.  Thus,  the  Philadelphia  union  of 
glass  blowers,  probably  the  first  local  organization  in  the 
trade,  began  almost  immediately  after  its  formation  in  1848 
to  encourage  the  establishment  of  unions  in  other  places 
with  a  view  to  forming  a  federal  association.  The  new 
local  unions  joined  in  turn  with  the  Philadelphia  union  in 
sending  members  to  organize  glass  blowers  in  nearby  com- 
munities. When  a  sufiicient  number  of  local  unions  had 
been  formed,  a  general  convention  was  called,  and  the  Grand 
Union  of  Glassblowers  was  created  in  1858.*^  Similarly, 
the  so-called  local  "  forge  "  of  iron  puddlers,  known  as  the 
Sons  of  Vulcan,  which  was  organized  at  Pittsburg  in  1857, 
was  quickly  followed  by  the  National  Forge  of  the  United 
Sons  of  Vulcan  in  i860. 

Many  of  the  national  unions  formed  in  the  United  States 
during  the  last  fifty  or  sixty  years  went  to  pieces  after  a 
brief  existence.  Very  few  of  the  present  federal  organiza- 
tions are  the  first  to  have  been  formed  in  the  trade.  Fre- 
quently they  have  been  preceded  by  several  ephemeral  asso- 
ciations which  have  sometimes  been  completely  forgotten 

"J.  C.  Simonds  and  J.  T.  McEnnis,  The  Story  of  Manual  Labor 
in  all  Lands  and  Ages. 


155]  FEDERATION    OF    LOCAL    UNIONS  49 

by  the  present  generation  of  workmen.  Concerning  them, 
inquiry  fails  to  reveal  any  information  save  a  casual,  often 
vague,  reference  to  their  creation  at  a  certain  date.  Only 
fifteen  national  unions  out  of  forty-three  known  to  have 
been  formed  between  the  years  1850  and  1880  have  sur- 
vived until  the  present  day.*-  The  twenty-eight  national 
unions  which  have  perished  embraced  twenty-one  distinct 
trades.  In  five  trades  there  was  more  than  one  attempt  to 
form  a  federal  union  during  this  period. 

The  workers  in  the  building  trades  have  had  greater  diffi- 
culty than  some  other  classes  of  workers  in  maintaining 
permanent  national  unions.  The  International  Union  of 
Bricklayers  and  Masons  has,  indeed,  been  able  to  maintain 
a  continuous  existence  from  its  formation  in  1866,  and  the 
Soft  Stone  Cutters  and  the  Granite  Cutters  have  been 
equally  successful.  Other  members  of  the  building  trades, 
such  as  the  Carpenters,  the  Painters,  the  Plumbers,  and  the 
Plasterers,  have  been  less  fortunate.  The  Carpenters  made 
two  unsuccessful  efforts  to  maintain  a  national  union  before 
the  present  organization  was  finally  established  in  1881.*^ 
Five  unsuccessful  attempts  were  made  by  the  Painters.** 
The  present  association  of  plumbers,  gas  fitters,  steam 
fitters,  and  steam  fitters'  helpers  was  preceded  by  an  earlier 
organization  known  as  the  International  Association  of 
Journeymen  Plumbers,  Steam  Fitters,  and  Gas  Fitters,  which 
ceased  to  exist  about  1888.  There  was  also  a  national  union 
of  plasterers  in  1866,  which  became  apparently  extinct  after 
a  short  life. 

The  great  difficulty  which  the  building  trades  have  ex- 
perienced in  maintaining  national  unions  may  be  ascribed 
partly  to  the  fact  that  in  these  crafts  collective  bargaining  is 

"Of  these  fifteen,  some  have  lost  their  identity  by  amalgamation 
with  national  unions  of  related  trades,  others  have  split  into  two 
or  more  separate  associations.  Most  of  the  remainder  have  changed 
their  names  once  or  several  times.  Few  claim  jurisdiction  over  the 
same  class  of  members  as  in  the  beginning. 

"The  Carpenter,  October,  1886.  See  also  G.  E.  McNeill,  The 
Labor  Movement,  p.  355.  See  also  International  Journal  [Iron 
Molders],  October,  1866,  p.  214. 

"The  Carpenter,  February,  1882.     See  also  McNeill,  pp.  386-388. 

4 


50  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [156 

conducted  locally.  The  functions  of  the  central  organiza- 
tion have  been  strictly  limited,  and  they  have  in  consequence 
been  loose  decentralized  bodies  which  any  serious  repulse 
in  the  struggle  with  employers  is  likely  to  disrupt.  Even 
the  exceptions  which  have  been  cited  prove  the  rule.  The 
International  Union  of  Bricklayers  and  Masons,  though  it 
has  held  together  nominally  from  the  date  of  its  founda- 
tion, has  barely  escaped  dissolution  at  various  times,  and 
during  the  two  years  from  1878  to  1880  the  regular  con- 
vention was  not  held,  and  the  union  gave  little  or  no  evi- 
dence of  life.  Special  conditions  have  rendered  the  main- 
tenance of  a  federal  organization  of  greater  importance  to 
the  stone  cutters  than  to  the  members  of  other  building 
trades.  In  the  first  place,  the  granite  cutters  and  the  soft 
stone  cutters,  unlike  the  workers  in  other  building  trades, 
are  not  producing  an  article  intended  primarily  or  solely  for 
local  consumption,  since  soft  stone,  as  well  as  graibite,  is 
often  cut  into  finished  shape  at  the  quarry  or  some  central 
stone  yard,  whence  it  is  sent  to  other  places.  These  trades 
have  therefore  found  desirable  the  uniform  regulation  of 
the  conditions  of  employment.  Moreover,  the  stone  cutters 
are  an  extremely  mobile  body  of  workers.  The  construc- 
tion of  some  great  public  work,  a  dam  or  a  public  building, 
may  gather  together  a  large  number  of  them  for  a  few 
months  or  even  years.  When  the  work  is  complete,  not  a 
single  stone  cutter  may  be  left  in  the  place. 

Industrial  depressions  have  been  the  chief  cause  of  the 
dissolution  of  federal  trade  unions  in  the  United  States. 
The  union  men  who  are  thrown  out  of  employment  feel 
themselves  unable  to  pay  their  dues,  and  so  are  suspended 
from  the  trade  organizations ;  or,  what  is  worse  from  a 
union  point  of  view,  many  of  them,  demoralized  by  unem- 
ployment, lose  faith  in  the  system  of  collective  bargaining 
and  stand  ready  to  take  the  places  of  their  fellow-workmen 
at  a  wage  far  below  the  union  scale.  To  add  to  the  de- 
moralizing influence  of  the  depression,  many  trade  unions, 
utterly  unmindful  of  the  rapidly  thinning  ranks  of  organ- 


157]  FEDERATION    OF    LOCAL    UNIONS  5 1 

izcd  labor  and  of  the  hundreds  who  are  vainly  seeking  em- 
ployment, rush  into  strikes  against  reductions  in  wages. 
The  strike  is  lost,  the  funds  of  the  association  are  exhausted, 
the  men  replaced  by  others  join  the  mass  of  the  unemployed, 
and  the  association  goes  to  pieces.  The  national  unions 
show  the  effects  of  the  depression  more  quickly  than  the 
local  unions,  since  the  strike  funds  of  the  national  organiza- 
tion are  the  first  to  be  exhausted,  and  the  local  unions  which 
survive  the  first  blast  of  the  industrial  storm  abandon 
allegiance  to  the  now  impotent  central  association,  and 
strive  to  fight  on  alone.  After  the  depression,  the  local 
unions  which  had  dissolved  begin  to  reorganize,  and  these, 
together  with  the  survivors,  unite  again  into  federal  asso- 
ciations. 

The  depressions  which  have  affected  the  industries  of  the 
United  States  at  periodic  intervals  divide  the  history  of 
district,  national,  and  international  associations  into  several 
stages.  The  first  of  these  extends  from  the  formation  of 
the  National  Typographical  Union  in  1852  to  the  Civil  War, 
and  may  be  called  the  experimental  period  of  federal  trade 
unionism.  Some  five  trades — those  of  the  printers,  iron 
molders,  stone  cutters,  machinists  and  blacksmiths,  and  hat 
finishers — succeeded  in  establishing  national  associations, 
more  or  less  permanent  in  character,  though  indefinite  in 
purpose  and  function  and  very  loosely  hung  together.  Un- 
successful attempts  to  form  such  central  unions  were  made 
in  this  period  by  the  carpenters,  locomotive  engineers,  paint- 
ers, brushmakers,  cotton  mule  spinners,  and  glass  blowers. 
The  Civil  War,  with  its  uncertainties  and  its  interference 
with  the  means  of  communication,  paralyzed  the  federal 
unions  then  in  existence.  After  Black  Friday  of  1861 
nearly  all  of  the  national  unions  formed  during  the  pre- 
ceding ten  years  went  to  pieces.  Not  a  single  labor  or- 
ganization held  a  national  convention  during  the  year  1862." 
The  Iron  Molders'  Union  of  America,  which  had  started  on 
its  career  so  auspiciously  in  1859,  practically  did  not  exist 

*Iron  Molders'  Journal,  April,  1878. 


52  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [158 

from  the  middle  of  1861  to  January,  1863.  Many  local 
unions  of  iron  molders  collapsed  completely  during  this  in- 
terval; some  adjourned  for  six  months  or  a  year.  The  few 
that  managed  to  maintain  themselves  were  not  in  condition 
to  call  a  convention.  With  the  revival  of  business,  however, 
the  few  societies  of  the  trade  which  survived  found  them- 
selves unable  to  take  advantage  of  the  industrial  improve- 
ment because  of  the  unorganized  condition  of  the  molders 
in  other  cities.  The  first  impulse  of  the  local  union  in  Phil- 
adelphia was,  therefore,  to  call  a  federal  convention  at  Pitts- 
burg in  January,  1863,  but  the  reorganized  national  associa- 
tion embraced  only  fourteen  local  unions  as  compared  with 
the  forty-three  belonging  to  the  union  in  1861. 

The  feverish  industrial  activity  which  characterized  the 
period  from  the  close  of  the  Civil  War  to  the  panic  of  1873 
is  marked  by  a  correspondingly  rapid  growth  of  the  labor 
movement.  Local  unions  were  quickly  organized  by  the 
coachmakers,  tailors,  carpenters,  plasterers,  painters,  boiler- 
makers  and  ship  builders,  glass  blowers,  boot-  and  shoe- 
makers, locomotive  engineers,  railway  conductors,  coopers, 
cigar  makers,  and  members  of  other  trades,  and  these  local 
unions  united  into  federal  associations.  One  unionist,  writ- 
ing in  a  trade  journal  about  this  time,  ventures  to  predict  that 
in  a  few  years  every  trade  in  New  York  City  will  be  holding 
its  national  convention.  "  There  is  no  reason,"  says  another 
writer,  "  why  a  convention  of  workmen  of  any  trade  or  call- 
ing should  not  be  able  to  improve  their  condition  and  for- 
ward their  interests  by  assembling  at  least  once  a  year  to 
give  expression  to  their  sentiments  upon  the  various  ques- 
tions of  importance  brought  before  them.  Lawyers,  doctors 
and  merchants  do  it, — why  not  the  workmen?"*® 

Then  came  the  crash,  the  panic  of  1873,  and  many  of  the 
associations  which  had  been  formed  disappeared.  Prior  to 
-the  panic  the  Knights  of  St.  Crispin,  a  national  organization 
of  boot  and  shoe  workers,  alone  had  a  membership  esti- 
mated at  seventy  thousand.     Two  years  later  it  embraced 

**  International  Journal  [Iron  Molders],  September,  1866,  p.  185. 


159]  FEDERATION    OF    LOCAL    UNIONS  53 

two  thousand  members,  and  soon  afterwards  went  to  pieces 
entirely.  The  total  membership  of  all  federal  trade  unions 
was  estimated  in  1875  at  only  one  hundred  thousand,  dis- 
tributed among  the  several  associations  about  as  follows : — 

Miners 35,355 

Locomotive  Engineers 12,000 

Printers    10,295 

Machinists  and  Blacksmiths  8,000 

Iron  Molders  7,5oo 

Coopers    5,000 

Cigar  Makers  5,000 

Sons  of  Vulcan  4,000 

Tailors   2,800 

Miscellaneous  (Bricklayers,  Plasterers,  Painters,  Hat 
Finishers,  Shoe  Workers,  Horseshoers,  Locomotive 

Firemen,  Mule  Spinners,  and  Weavers) 10,000 

Total   99.950 

After  1875  the  Miners'  National  Association,  with  its 
membership  of  thirty-five  thousand,  collapsed  completely,  as 
did  also  the  federal  unions  of  tailors,  shoemakers,  plasterers, 
painters,  and  others  in  the  above  list.  In  1877  the  total 
membership  of  all  national  unions  probably  fell  short — per- 
haps considerably  short — of  fifty  thousand.  Only  the  fed- 
eral organizations  of  locomotive  engineers,  locomotive  lire- 
men,  iron  and  steel  workers,  iron  molders,  printers,  cigar 
makers,  bricklayers,  and  perhaps  those  of  one  or  two 
other  trades  lived  through  the  period  of  hard  times  from 
1873  to  1878.^^  The  Iron  IMolders'  Union,  which  had 
learned  much  from  its  experience  during  the  storm  and 
stress  of  the  Civil  War  period,  emerged  from  the  hard  times 
showing  comparatively  little  ill  efifect.  Its  membership  had 
been  only  slightly  depleted,  and  in  1876  a  balance  still  existed 
in  the  treasury.'*^  "  The  Iron  Molders'  Union,"  says  a  con- 
temporary account,  "  alone  of  all  protective  unions  can  be 
said  to  be  really  carrying  out  the  work  that  its  name  implies. 
It  is  weakened,  but  is  still  keeping  up  the  fight."*'*  The 
Printers  suffered  more  severely,  but  their  union  was  in  mod- 
erately good  condition  in  1877.     Another  antebellum  asso- 

"  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  December,  1877,  PP-  2,  3. 
**  Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings,  1876. 
"Iron  Molders'  Journal,  February,  1877. 


54  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [l6o 

ciation,  which  was  composed  of  iron  puddlers,  had  united 
with  other  trades  in  the  industry  to  form  the  Amalgamated 
Iron  and  Steel  Workers  in  1876,  and  this  amalgamation  was 
prospering.  Two  trades  organized  after  the  Civil  War — 
the  locomotive  engineers  and  the  locomotive  firemen — were 
maintaining  comparatively  strong  associations.  The  Cigar 
Makers'  International  Union  had,  however,  almost  com- 
pletely collapsed.  The  Bricklayers  struggled  on  with  little 
vitality  for  several  years  after  the  revival  of  industry,  and 
practically  did  not  exist  from  1879  to  1881. 

From  about  1878  to  the  depression  of  1893  the  number  of 
national  and  international  trade  unions  steadily  increased. 
Many  trades  which  during  the  earlier  period  had  been  unable 
to  maintain  permanent  federal  unions  now  succeeded  in 
establishing  them.  Other  trades  not  hitherto  unionized 
began  to  form  local  unions  in  many  places,  and  these  were 
united  rapidly  into  federal  associations.  Industrial  condi- 
tions were  on  the  whole  favorable,  since  the  industrial  de- 
pression lasting  from  1882  to  1885  was  slight  compared  with 
its  predecessor,  and  exercised  but  little  deterrent  influence. 

Although  the  phenomenal  growth  of  the  Knights  of  Labor, 
an  organization  which  ignored  the  existing  national  associa- 
tions and  sought  to  unite  lodges  of  a  manifold  variety  of 
trades  in  one  vast  federation,  misdirected  for  a  time  the 
energies  of  the  labor  movement,  it  also  did  much  to  popu- 
larize and  stimulate  it.  Moreover,  while  many  of  its  local 
and  national  trade  assemblies  maintained  bitter  jurisdictional 
disputes  with  existing  national  associations,  other  national 
trade  assemblies  were  formed  in  trades  previously  unor- 
ganized, or  organized  only  in  a  few  scattered  localities.  A 
number  of  the  international  associations  existing  at  the 
present  day  originated  as  one  of  these  national  trade  as- 
semblies. After  the  decline  of  the  Knights  of  Labor  they 
seceded  to  form  independent  unions.  The  present  National 
Brotherhood  of  Operative  Potters,  for  example,  was  created 
in  1890  by  the  secession  from  the  Knights  of  Labor  of  the 
potters  constituting  District  Assembly  No.   160.     The  In- 


l6l]  FEDERATION    OF    LOCAL    UNIONS  5  5 

ternational  Brotherhood  of  Bookbinders  is  the  successor  of 
National  Trade  Assembly  230.  The  present  international 
organization  of  carriage  and  wagon  workers  was  preceded 
by  the  Carriage  and  Wagon  Workers'  Trade  Assembly  No. 
247,  and  the  United  Garment  Workers  by  District  Assembly 
No.  231. 

The  increase  of  federal  trade  unions  was  again  abruptly 
checked  by  the  panic  of  1893,  but  the  effects  were  not  so 
disastrous  as  those  of  the  panic  of  1873.  ^Slany  unions 
suffered  severely  from  loss  of  membership,  but  very  few 
were  dissolved.  A  number  of  the  more  centralized  associa- 
tions emerged  almost  unhurt  from  the  period  of  hard  times. 
The  executive  boards  of  these  associations,  vested  with  con- 
trol over  the  strike  policy  of  the  constituent  societies,  re- 
strained the  local  unions  from  rushing  blindly  into  useless 
conflicts.  During  this  interval,  when  the  activities  of  the 
central  associations  in  collective  bargaining  were  largely 
in  abeyance,  the  subordinate  unions  were  kept  faithful  to 
their  allegiance  by  sick,  death,  and  other  benefits. 

The  years  following  the  depression  of  the  nineties  have 
been  prosperous  ones  in  the  annals  of  trade  unionism,  and 
have  witnessed  an  unparalleled  growth  of  national  and 
international  organizations.  Over  one  hundred  and  thirty 
of  these  associations,  most  of  them  possessing  jurisdiction 
over  local  unions  in  all  parts  of  North  America,  are  now 
in  existence.  Of  these,  about  fifty  made  their  appearance 
during  the  years  from  1896  to  1905. 

The  American  Federation  of  Labor,  which  displaced  the 
Knights  of  Labor,  has  been  active  in  forming  national  and 
international  trade  unions.  A  loose  confederation,  created 
and  controlled  by  the  existing  national  unions,  it  has  not,  like 
the  Knights,  aroused  conflict  and  antagonism.  In  1905  one 
hundred  and  eighteen  of  the  one  hundred  and  thirty  national 
and  international  unions  belonged  to  the  Federation.  More- 
over, the  number  of  national  associations  is  being  constantly 
swelled  through  the  efforts  of  paid  agents  maintained  by  the 
'American  Federation  of  Labor.     These  agents  are  contin- 


56  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [l62 

ually  organizing  local  unions  among  the  non-union  workers 
in  various  industries  and  welding  them  together  into  inter- 
national trade  unions. 

The  influence  of  the  American  Federation  of  Labor  has 
also  tended  to  hasten  materially  the  transition  from  local 
to  national  unionism.  Formerly,  local  unions  of  a  trade 
existed  usually  for  some  years  before  they  were  federated, 
often  reluctantly,  into  national  and  international  associations. 
Under  the  influence  of  the  American  Federation  of  Labor 
the  organization  of  a  federal  union  has  sometimes  followed 
almost  immediately  the  appearance  of  local  unions  in  the 
craft.  When  only  a  few  isolated  local  unions  exist  in  any 
trade,  usually  each  of  them  holds  a  charter  direct  from  the 
American  Federation  of  Labor;  but  as  soon  as  enough  of 
these  societies  have  been  organized,  they  are  federated  into 
a  national  or  continental  union.  When,  however,  the  im- 
mediate creation  of  a  federal  association  seems  urgently  de- 
sirable, a  national  charter  is  sometimes  granted  to  a  single 
local  union,  perhaps  the  sole  existing  one  in  the  trade,  or  to  a 
group  of  promising  leaders  of  the  craft.  With  the  assist- 
ance of  paid  organizers  of  the  American  Federation,  fellow- 
craftsmen  in  all  parts  of  the  country  are  induced  to  form 
local  unions.  Soon  a  convention  of  representatives  from 
these  newly  created  local  societies  is  held,  a  framework  of 
government  is  established,  and  a  full-fledged  national  or 
continental  association  emerges.  In  only  a  few  trades  are 
the  local  societies  still  disunited. 


CHAPTER   IV 

THE  AREA  OF  FEDERATION 

As  a  rule,  the  first  federal  association  formed  by  the  local 
unions  in  a  trade  has  been  national  or  international  in  name 
and  in  the  proposed  extent  of  its  jurisdiction.  The  national 
or  international  associations  in  a  few  trades  have  been  pre- 
ceded, however,  by  state  or  district  unions.  Thus  in  1863, 
some  years  before  the  rise  of  the  Coopers'  International 
Union,  the  coopers  of  New  York  formed  a  state  association 
known  at  first  as  the  Grand  Society  and  later  as  the  Central 
Union  of  New  York.  When  the  International  Union  was 
organized  about  1870,  the  Central  Union  of  New  York,  rec- 
ognizing the  greater  utility  of  the  wider  federation,  dis- 
solved at  once,  and  its  constituent  local  unions  affiliated  them- 
selves with  the  International  Union. ^  The  glass  bottle  blow- 
ers were  for  some  years  divided  into  two  district  unions,  one 
composed  of  local  unions  east  of  Pittsburg  and  the  other  of 
societies  west  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains ;  this  division  was 
necessary,  it  is  said,  because  of  the  expense  of  sending  dele- 
gates such  long  distances.  The  need  for  national  regula- 
tion of  the  terms  of  the  labor  contract  led  finally  to  the 
consolidation  of  the  two  districts.^ 

Federal  associations  confined  in  jurisdiction  to  New  Eng- 
land have  been  formed  by  the  workers  in  a  few  industries 
localized  largely  in  that  part  of  the  country.  The  first  fed- 
eral union  of  mule  spinners,  formed  in  1858,  embraced  only 
local  organizations  of  the  trade  in  New  England.^  The 
federal  unions  established  by  boot  and  shoe  lasters  in  1885 
and  by  boot  and  shoe  cutters  in  1887  had  a  similar  limited 

^  Coopers'  Monthly  Journal,  October,  November,  1870,  pp.  4,  5. 

^  Simonds  and  McEnnis.  pp.  629-635. 

'  Constitution  and  General  By-Laws  of  the  United  Operative  Mule 
Spinners  of  New  England,  Benevolent  and  Protective  Association. 
Fall  River,  1858. 

57 


58  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [164 

territorial  jurisdiction.*  Local  unions  of  cutters  and  lasters 
in  other  parts  of  the  country  asked  for  admission  to  these 
associations,  but  were  refused  for  several  years  on  the 
ground  that  before  the  jurisdiction  was  further  widened, 
branches  should  be  established  in  the  unorganized  shoe  cen- 
ters of  New  England.  The  real  reason  as  now  stated  by 
men  prominent  in  these  early  federations  was  that  the  New 
England  lasters  and  cutters  had  little  to  gain  by  an  alliance 
with  members  of  the  trade  in  other  parts  of  the  country. 
For  many  years  an  overwhelming  percentage  of  shoes  made 
in  this  country  were  manufactured  in  New  England.  Grad- 
ually, factories  were  established  in  other  parts  of  the  coun- 
try, but  the  New  England  manufacturers  were  still  able,  not- 
withstanding the  handicap  of  the  additional  expense  for 
transportation,  to  compete  in  the  home  markets  of  these  new 
factories,  and  if  they  could  not  do  so,  both  employers  and 
workmen  were  very  loath  to  admit  their  inability.  On  the 
other  hand,  as  skilled  lasters  and  cutters  were  scarce  in  the 
Central  Atlantic  States  and  the  Middle  West,  a  higher  rate 
of  wages  was  paid  in  the  new  factories  than  in  New  England. 
The  constant  influx  of  workers  from  the  older  shoe  centers 
gradually  tended,  however,  to  depress  these  higher  wages,  so 
that  the  cutters  and  lasters  of  the  Central  Atlantic  States 
and  of  the  Middle  West  were  very  desirous  to  protect  them- 
selves by  federating  with  their  fellow-craftsmen  in  New 
England.  By  1890  both  the  lasters  and  the  cutters  had 
widened  the  jurisdiction  of  their  organizations  to  include 
local  societies  of  the  trade  in  any  part  of  the  United  States. 
Among  the  coal  mine  workers,  district  or  state  unions  pre- 
ceded the  formation  of  national  and  international  associa- 
tions. Of  one  great  national  union  there  was  at  that  time 
little  need.  During  the  early  period  of  coal  mining  little  or 
no  competition  existed  between  coal  operators  in  different  dis- 
tricts. Each  coal  field  or  group  of  adjoining  coal  fields  sup- 
plied different  markets.  Thus,  roughly  speaking,  the  an- 
thracite regions  of  Pennsylvania  and  the  bituminous  fields 

*  The  Laster,  August  15,  1888,  p.  3. 


165]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  59 

of  western  Maryland  sent  their  coal  chiefly  to  one  of  the 
large  seaport  cities  of  the  Atlantic  coast, — Baltimore,  Phil- 
adelphia, or  New  York.  The  bituminous  coal  of  western 
Pennsylvania  w^as  sent  to  Pittsburg,  whence  the  surplus  not 
consumed  in  local  industries  was,  together  with  the  product 
of  eastern  Ohio  and  West  Virginia,  shipped  down  the 
Ohio  River  to  Cincinnati  and  to  points  on  the  lower  Mis- 
sissippi. Coal  from  the  valleys  of  nortliern  Ohio  and  from 
Indiana  and  Illinois  found  its  way  to  one  of  the  ports  on 
the  Great  Lakes.  Each  district  association  was  able,  there- 
fore, to  regulate  the  wages  of  its  members,  their  hours,  and 
other  conditions  of  employment  irrespective  of  conditions 
prevailing  in  coal  fields  outside  its  jurisdiction. 

On  the  other  hand,  since  the  miners  have  been  a  migratory 
body,  mining  in  Pennsylvania  in  spring  and  fall  the  coal 
sent  down  the  rivers  and  in  Ohio  in  summer  the  coal  trans- 
ported by  the  Great  Lakes,  a  national  travelling  card,  recog- 
nized at  all  union  collieries  of  the  country,  has  always  been 
regarded  as  a  need.-^  From  the  beginning  a  national  strike 
fund  has  also  been  greatly  desired ;  but  in  coal  mining,  wages 
constitute  such  a  large  part  of  the  cost  of  production  that  the 
equalization  of  the  terms  of  the  labor  contract  for  all  com- 
peting operators  has  been  of  prime  importance,  and  other 
activities  of  federal  unions  of  the  workers  have  sunk  into 
comparative  insignificance. 

About  i860  we  find  the  miners  in  each  coal  field  or  group 
of  competing  coal  fields  organized  into  district  associations. 
The  creation  of  national  unions  was  attempted,  indeed,  from 
the  beginning;  but,  until  1885,  when  competition  began  be- 
tween coal  operators  in  all  parts  of  the  United  States,  the 
eflforts  to  weld  together  the  various  district  associations  into 

"  No  system  of  apprenticeship  exists  among  the  coal  miners.  The 
workers  have  been  recruited  from  the  great  mass  of  shifting,  un- 
skilled labor,  from  farm  hands  who  crowd  into  the  mines  during 
the  winter  months  and  compete  successfully  for  employment  with 
the  professional  miners,  from  the  Slavs  and  other  European  immi- 
grants who  are  now  replacing  the  native  Americans  in  the  collieries, 
and  from  the  children  employed  about  the  mines,  such  as  the  door 
boy,  the  fan  boy,  and  the  breaker  boy,  who  rise  by  successive  steps 
even  to  the  job  of  fire  boss. 


6o  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [l66 

one  closely  knit  federation  invariably  failed.  The  first  na- 
tional organization  concerning  which  we  have  definite  in- 
formation was  the  American  Miners'  Association.  No  per- 
manent machinery  of  government  was  created  for  this  cen- 
tral association,  and  except  for  the  maintenance  of  a  national 
travelling  card,  recognized  in  all  districts,  it  had  no  real 
functions.  Each  district  union  was  practically  independent, 
and  had  no  connection  with  other  district  unions  save  to 
recognize  the  cards  borne  by  their  members.  The  American 
Miners'  Association  went  to  pieces  amid  the  strikes  of  1867 
and  1868.  The  National  Miners'  and  Laborers'  Benevolent 
Association,  which  appeared  about  1871,  resembled  its  pre- 
decessor in  that  it  possessed  no  funds,  no  machinery  of 
government,  no  real  functions.  Each  district  was  again 
practically  an  independent  association. 

The  idea  of  welding  the  various  district  unions  into  one 
firmly  unified  federal  organization  was  conceived  by  John 
Siney,  who  had  risen  into  prominence  during  the  early  move- 
ment in  the  anthracite  region.  As  a  result  of  efforts  made 
by  him,  the  Miners'  National  Association  was  formed  in 
1873.®  This  organization,  unlike  its  predecessors,  was  more 
than  a  mere  name.  A  central  strike  fund  was  established ; 
conventions  made  up  of  delegates  from  the  district  unions 
were  held  yearly ;  and  permanent  paid  officers,  who  estab- 
lished the  headquarters  of  the  national  union  at  Cleveland, 
were  elected,'^  But  the  Miners'  National  Association  had 
only  a  brief  existence.  It  reached  the  zenith  of  its  power  in 
1875,  and  went  to  pieces  in  that  year  after  a  series  of  dis- 
astrous strikes.  During  the  decade  following  the  disappear- 
ance of  this  association  no  national  union  of  coal  workers 
existed.  Two  unsuccessful  attempts  were  made  to  establish 
one,  but  neither  of  the  proposed  associations  was  formed. 
Meantime  the  miners  were  busily  engaged  in  strengthening 
their  state  and  district  unions. 

Gradually  the  development  of  the  great  railway  systems 

'  National  Labor  Tribune,  November  21,  1873,  p.  4. 
'  First  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics  of  Labor  and 
Agriculture  for  the  Commonwealth  of  Pennsylvania,  1874,  pp.  532-537. 


167]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  6 1 

of  the  country  and  the  growth  of  transportation  facihties 
upon  the  Great  Lakes  were  bringing  all  the  bituminous  coal 
fields  of  the  United  States  into  competition  with  each  other. 
For  example,  part  of  the  coal  of  western  Pennsylvania  was 
now  sent  from  Pittsburg  to  the  East,  where  it  competed  in 
the  tide-water  markets  with  the  output  from  the  mines  of 
Maryland,  West  Virginia,  and  central  Pennsylvania.  Part 
was  sent  to  Cleveland,  whence,  together  with  the  coal  from 
northern  Ohio,  it  was  transported  by  way  of  the  Great  Lakes 
until  it  met  in  competition  the  coal  of  the  States  to  the  north- 
west. Part  was  shipped  down  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi 
rivers,  competing  with  the  coal  of  southern  Ohio,  Iowa, 
Indian  Territory,  and  other  States  to  the  south  and  west. 
"  Circumstances  at  the  time  of  the  formation  of  the  Miners' 
National  Association,"  wrote  the  secretary  of  the  Coal 
IVIiners'  Beneficial  and  Protective  Association  of  Western 
Pennsylvania  in  1883,  "  were  not  so  favorable  to  the  creation 
of  an  interstate  federation  as  they  are  now ;  the  facilities 
for  transportation  were  not  so  highly  developed,  and  com- 
petition from  distant  territories  was  less  to  be  feared. 
Now  the  coal  producing  districts  are  indirectly,  if  not 
directly  competitors  to  the  farthest  extreme,  and  though  the 
coal  fields  of  two  states  may  have  different  markets,  there 
is  always  some  territory  with  Avhich  both  compete  in  com- 
mon; and  the  indiscriminate  cutting  of  prices  in  one  region 
is  often  followed  by  reductions  in  distant  places."* 

Keenly  alive  to  the  changed  conditions,  the  presidents  of 
the  several  state  associations  issued  in  September,  1885, 
the  call  for  the  interstate  convention  which  gave  birth  to  the 
National  Federation  of  Miners  and  J\Iine  Laborers.  "  Local, 
district  and  state  organization,"  declared  the  preamble  to  the 
constitution  of  the  new  national  union,  "  have  done  much 
towards  ameliorating  the  condition  of  our  craft  in  the  past ; 
but  today  neither  district  nor  state  unions  can  regulate  the 
markets  to  wdiich  their  coal  is  shipped.  We  know  this  to 
our  sorrow.     In  a  federation  of  all  lodges  and  branches  of 

'  National  Labor  Tribune,  January  13,  1883,  p.  5. 


62  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [l68 

miners'  unions  lies  our  only  hope."  Ever  since  1885  a  loose 
national  federation  of  miners  has  existed,  though  it  has 
threatened  sometimes  to  break  apart  into  the  constituent 
district  unions. 

The  district  unions  did  not  always  disappear  upon  the 
formation  of  a  national  union  in  the  trade.  On  the  contrary, 
they  have  been  retained  by  the  national  organizations  as 
important  governmental  units.  The  primary  purpose  of  the 
district  unions  in  forty-two  out  of  eighty-five  trades  which 
provide  for  them  in  the  constitution  of  their  federal  associa- 
tions is  to  render  the  conditions  of  employment  uniform 
throughout  the  territory  over  which  they  have  jurisdiction.^ 
When  the  competition  between  employers  is  not  national  but 
is  confined  to  a  limited  area,  such  as  a  single  city,  a  group  of 
adjacent  towns  or  cities,  or  a  wider  stretch  of  territory,  dis- 
trict unions  corresponding  to  such  limited  competitive  areas 
are  needed  to  equalize  wages  and  other  conditions  of  employ- 
ment. For  this  reason  Carpenters,  Bricklayers,  Barbers, 
Bill  Posters,  Hotel  and  Restaurant  Employees,  and  other 
unions  with  local  markets  have  formed  district  unions  to 
unite  the  several  societies  of  the  trade  in  the  same  or  ad- 
jacent places. 

Even  though  the  market  for  a  commodity  be  national, 
regulation  of  the  conditions  of  employment  by  the  district 
union  may  be  necessary,  since  differences  in  cost  of  living, 
cost  of  raw  materials,  interest  on  capital,  and  methods  of 
production  may  render  uniform  regulation  for  the  entire 
country  impracticable.  Moreover,  even  when  the  terms  of 
the  labor  contract  are  fixed  nationally,  detailed  supplemen- 
tary regulation  by  the  district  unions  is  often  necessary. 
Thus,  during  the  existence  of  national  agreements  between 
the  Iron  Holders  and  their  employers  from  about  1891  to 
1904,  the  Iron  Holders'  Conference  Board  of  New  York 
and   Vicinity   maintained   supplementary   agreements   with 

'Undoubtedly  district  unions  exist  in  some  of  the  trades  whose 
international  associations  make  no  provision  for  them  in  the  con- 
stitution, as,  for  example,  in  the  Bridge  and  Structural  Iron  Work- 
ers who  have  formed  the  District  Council  of  Housesmiths  and 
Bridgemen  in  New  York  and  Vicinity. 


169]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  63 

employers,  which  did  not  conflict,  however,  in  their  terms 
with  either  the  national  agreements  or  the  rules  of  the  in- 
ternational union. 

Another  purpose  of  the  district  association  is  to  unite  all 
those  local  unions  which  will  be  afifected  by  a  strike.  The 
strike  of  locomotive  engineers  on  one  part  of  a  railway  sys- 
tem affects  all  other  engineers  on  that  system.  The  strike 
begun  in  one  establishment  is  likely  to  spread  to  other  in- 
dustrial establishments  in  the  same  city.  As  a  rule  the  dis- 
trict union  unites  the  workers  who  are  liable  to  be  included 
in  a  strike,  and,  therefore,  its  consent  must  usually  be  ob- 
tained before  a  conflict  with  employers  can  be  begun.  Even 
when  there  are  no  district  unions,  some  national  associations 
require  that  the  consent  of  all  local  unions  in  a  community 
be  obtained  before  any  one  of  them  is  permitted  to  strike. 

jMany  district  associations  maintain  a  joint  fund  for  the 
payment  of  strike  benefits  or  the  support  of  business  agents 
and  other  officials.  Thus,  since  no  one  of  the  local  unions 
of  cotton  mule  spinners  in  Rhode  Island  was  able  to  pay  the 
salary  of  a  business  representative  or  occupy  his  time  com- 
pletely, they  have  all  united  into  a  state  association  to  main- 
tain jointly  a  paid  agent.  It  is  quite  common  in  the  build- 
ing trades  for  a  single  official  to  serve  as  business  agent  for 
all  local  unions  represented  in  the  council  of  the  district 
union.  Nine  of  the  eighty-five  international  organizations 
which  require  the  formation  of  district  unions  provide  that 
each  of  the  district  unions  shall  maintain  a  business  agent, 
and  two  of  the  nine  contribute  one  half  of  his  salary.^" 

Frequently  administrative  and  judicial  functions  of  the  in- 
ternational unions  are  delegated  to  the  officers  of  the  dis- 
trict unions.  Because  of  their  familiarity  with  the  district 
these  officials  are  able  to  perform  such  duties  very  efficiently. 
Thus  in  thirty-three  out  of  eighty-five  associations  the  offi- 
cials of  the  district  unions  are  required  to  make  some  attempt 
at  conciliation  before  the  application  of  a  local  society  for 
strike  benefits  may  be  submitted  to  the  international  organ- 

"  The  Blacksmiths  and  Helpers  and  the  Machinists. 


64  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [l/O 

ization.  This  intermediation  by  an  outside  party  not  em- 
bittered by  participation  in  the  dispute  leads  to  the  peaceful 
settlement  of  many  petty  grievances,  and  also  saves  the 
international  officers  from  journeying  to  the  locality  in 
order  to  adjust  the  difficulty.  When  a  strike  has  been  de- 
clared, district  officials,  the  joint  executive  committee,  or 
a  specially  appointed  committee  for  the  district  assumes 
direction  of  it,  assigns  the  pickets  to  their  duties,  collects 
funds,  pays  benefits,  and  reports  from  time  to  time  regard- 
ing the  progress  of  the  strike  to  the  international  association. 

Sometimes  the  district  officials  are  required  to  enforce  the 
observance  of  international  rules  and  to  make  periodic  ex- 
amination of  the  methods  of  administration  in  the  local 
unions.  Their  constant  presence  in  the  district  enables  them 
to  perform  this  service  more  effectively  than  international 
officials  could.  Eleven  of  the  above-mentioned  eighty-five 
international  unions  delegate  part  of  their  judicial  power  to 
the  district  board  or  to  some  district  official.  In  eight  of 
them  the  district  authorities  may  consider  charges  against 
the  local  unions  as  well  as  against  members,^^  but  in  three 
others  they  may  consider  only  cases  in  which  members  alone 
are  involved.^^  The  district  committee,  which  can  call  wit- 
nesses and  personally  cross-examine  them,  is  better  able  to 
determine  the  merits  of  a  case  than  are  the  international 
officials,  who  must  secure  their  evidence  from  the  written 
statements  of  the  two  parties  to  the  dispute.  The  local 
unions  and  individual  members  are  protected  by  the  right  of 
appeal  from  the  district  to  the  international  union. 

The  territorial  jurisdiction  of  the  district  federations 
varies  widely.  The  most  common  are  the  so-called  joint 
councils,  district  councils,  or  district  advisory  boards  which 
unite  the  local  unions  in  the  same  city.  During  the  period 
following  the  Civil  War,  before  a  national  association  of 
painters  existed,  the  five  or  six  societies  of  the  trade  in 

"  Blast  Furnace  Workers,  Bricklayers  and  Masons,  Garment 
Workers,  Iron,  Steel  and  Tin  Workers,  Painters,  Decorators  and 
Paper  Hangers,  Seamen,  Teamsters,  and  Tin  Plate  Workers. 

"  Hotel  and  Restaurant  Employees,  Interior  Freight  Handlers, 
and  Locomotive  Firemen  and  Enginemen. 


17  I  ]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  65 

New  York  City  were  united  by  a  joint  council. ^^  Joint 
councils  of  Bricklayers  and  of  other  trades  were  formed 
about  the  same  time  in  New  York  and  other  large  cities 
where  the  overgrown  local  union  had  been  split  into  several 
societies.^*  Of  eighty-five  international  organizations  which 
require  the  formation  of  district  unions,  forty-one  provide 
solely  for  the  creation  of  joint  councils  limited  in  jurisdic- 
tion to  a  single  city,  and  thirty-six  for  larger  district  associa- 
tions whose  control  extends  over  all  or  part  of  several  States. 
The  remaining  eight  international  unions  have  established 
both  joint  councils  of  local  unions  in  the  same  city  and  dis- 
trict associations  of  wider  territorial  jurisdiction. 

When  several  cities,  such  as  New  York,  Jersey  City,  and 
Hoboken,  lie  in  close  proximity  to  one  another,  the  societies 
in  these  adjoining  places  frequently  combine  to  form  a  single 
joint  council.  Such  a  joint  council  of  all  unions  of  cigar 
makers  in  New  York,  Jersey  City,  Hoboken,  Brooklyn,  and 
Williamsburg  was  formed  as  early  as  i88i.^^  These  inter- 
urban  councils  are  needed  in  the  first  place  because  even  in 
industries  with  a  local  patronage  keen  competition  exists 
between  employers  in  adjacent  cities.  In  addition,  journey- 
men often  live  in  one  town  and  work  in  another,  but  prefer 
to  be  members  of  the  local  union  in  the  town  where  they 
reside.  In  the  building  trades  the  place  of  employment 
shifts  frequently  from  one  to  another  of  a  series  of  adjacent 
towns,  and  to  compel  a  journeyman  to  change  his  affiHation 
to  a  new  local  society  every  time  he  goes  to  work  in  such 
adjacent  cities  would  cause  him  serious  inconvenience.  The 
bricklayers'  unions  of  New  York  City,  finding  that  they 
were  unable  to  prevent  fellow-craftsmen  working  in  outside 
towns  from  being  employed  in  New  York  City,  decided 
about  1887  to  form  a  joint  council  of  all  local  organizations 
of  the  trade  within  a  radius  of  seven  miles  of  the  city.^* 
Some   years   later,   however,   by   an    agreement   with   the 

"International  Journal  [Iron  Molders],  November,  1866,  p.  249. 

"Ibid.,  December,  1866,  p.  280. 

"  Proceedings,  1881. 

"Constitution  and  Rules  of  Order,  1887. 

5 


66  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [172 

Alason  Builders'  Association,  which  gave  preference  in 
employment  to  the  New  York  bricklayers,  the  New  York 
local  unions  succeeded  in  preventing  members  of  unions  out- 
side of  New  York  from  securing  work  in  the  city/^  The 
joint  conference  was  then  dissolved.  On  the  conference 
board  of  the  Iron  IMolders  and  on  that  of  the  Machinists 
in  New  York  and  vicinity  are  represented  all  local  unions 
in  the  towns  lying  within  a  radius  of  sixty  miles  of  New- 
York  City.  In  several  trades  joint  councils  have  been 
formed  to  unite  the  local  societies  in  the  twin  cities  of  Min- 
neapolis and  St.  Paul,  in  Boston  and  its  surrounding  subur- 
ban towns,  and  in  groups  of  adjacent  small  towns  such  as 
Cohoes,  Albany,  and  Troy. 

The  primary  functions  of  joint  councils  of  local  unions 
are  the  maintenance  of  uniform  conditions  of  employment 
and  the  control  over  the  declaration  and  conduct  of  strikes. 
The  international  unions  have  used  them  only  to  a  very 
slight  extent  as  administrative  units.  Only  four  hold  the 
joint  councils  definitely  responsible  for  the  maintenance  of 
honest  administration  and  the  observance  of  international 
rules  by  the  local  unions.  Only  two  have  vested  them  with 
judicial  power. 

The  Typographical  Union,  the  United  Sons  of  Vulcan,  the 
Iron  Molders,  the  Cigar  Makers,  and  other  early  federal 
associations  attempted  to  federate  the  local  unions  in  each 
State,  but  these  attempts  usually  failed.  In  the  first  place, 
the  competitive  area  in  which  uniform  regulation  of  em- 
ployment is  needed  is  seldom  identical  with  a  State  but  may 
include  a  part  of  one  or  parts  of  several  States.  Secondly, 
in  one  State  there  may  be  only  three  or  four  local  unions  of 
the  trade;  in  another,  fifty  or  more.  Even  for  purposes  of 
administration  such  divisions  are  usually  inadequate.  All 
of  the  early  international  unions  mentioned  above  very  soon 
abandoned  their  efforts  to  form  state  associations.  At  pres- 
ent nine  international  unions  make  provision  in  their  con- 

"  Thirty-first  Annual  Report  of  the  President  and  the  Secretary, 
1896;  Thirty-second  Annual  Report  of  the  President  and  the  Secre- 
tary, 1897. 


173]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  6/ 

stitutions  for  state  associations.  Tlie  membership  in  seven 
of  these  organizations  is  distributed  fairly  well  in  all  cities 
and  many  towns  and  villages  throughout  the  country.^^  In 
the  National  Association  of  Post  Office  Clerks  the  function 
of  the  state  union  is  to  organize  new  locals,  in  the  other  six 
to  maintain  uniform  hours,  wages,  and  other  working  con- 
ditions. The  Locomotive  Firemen  and  Locomotive  Engi- 
neers have  created  state  associations  in  order  to  obtain  state 
legislation  affecting  the  interests  of  railway  employees. 
District  unions  of  an  entirely  different  character  are  used  by 
them  for  collective  bargaining. 

Twenty-four  international  associations  divide  the  terri- 
tory under  their  jurisdiction  into  districts  of  variable  size. 
In  a  number  of  unions  the  New  England  States  constitute 
a  single  district.  The  International  Seamen's  Union  follows 
the  coast  lines  and  inland  waters  in  marking  off  its  districts. 
One  of  its  district  unions  claims  jurisdiction  over  all  seamen 
on  the  Atlantic  Coast ;  another,  over  all  seamen  working  on 
the  Great  Lakes,  and  the  third,  over  those  working  on  the 
Pacific  Coast.  The  districts  in  the  International  Pilots'  As- 
sociation are  similar.  The  state  and  district  unions  of  coal 
miners  which  existed  before  the  creation  of  a  national  fed- 
eration of  the  trade  have  been  retained  by  the  United  Mine 
Workers  of  America.  These  state  and  district  unions  em- 
brace all  miners  in  the  same  coal  field  or  in  a  group  of  coal 
fields  having  common  shipping  points.  Sometimes  they  are 
further  subdivided  into  districts  w^hich  embrace  the  miners 
working  in  one  section  of  a  large  coal  field  or  in  a  group 
of  mines  under  the  same  management. 

The  district  associations  with  broad  territorial  jurisdiction 
are  used  by  thirteen  of  the  above  twenty-four  international 
unions  solely  for  administrative  purposes.  One  of  the  vice- 
presidents  of  the  international  union  is  usually  stationed  in 
each  district  and  serves  as  its  executive  head.  Other  inter- 
national associations  maintaining  large  district  unions  use 

'*  These  are  the  Bricklayers,  Granite  Cutters,  Stone  Cutters,  Horse- 
shoers.  Post  Office  Clerks,  Stationary  Engineers,  and  Stationary 
Firemen. 


6S  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [174 

them  for  collective  bargaining  as  well  as  for  administrative 
purposes. 

Eight  organizations  of  railway  employees  group  all  lodges 
on  the  same  railway  system  into  district  unions.  Each  lodge 
along  the  system  has  a  representative  on  the  general  com- 
mittee of  adjustment.  When  the  members  of  a  lodge  work 
on  several  railway  systems,  the  lodge  may  have  a  repre- 
sentative on  the  committees  of  adjustment  of  each  system 
by  which  its  members  are  employed.  When  a  railway  sys- 
tem is  divided  into  two  or  more  divisions  or  departments, 
each  with  its  own  manager  under  control  of  the  general 
manager  of  the  system,  the  railway  employees  form  district 
unions  to  correspond.  A  general  committee  of  adjustment 
is  created  for  each  division  or  department,  and  these  several 
committees  of  adjustment  elect  representatives  to  a  general 
committee  of  adjustment  for  the  entire  system.  Part  of  the 
members  of  the  International  Brotherhood  of  Blacksmiths 
and  Helpers  and  the  International  Association  of  Machinists 
work  in  railway  shops,  part  are  employed  in  general  repair 
shops  or  in  large  machine  shops.  Both  groups  of  workers 
are  often  organized  together  in  the  same  local  union.  All 
blacksmiths  or  machinists  working  on  the  same  railway  sys- 
tem are,  like  other  railroad  employees,  united  through  their 
representatives  on  the  general  committees  of  adjustment. 
Blacksmiths  or  machinists  in  the  machine  or  repair  shops 
belong  to  the  district  union  with  jurisdiction  over  the  ter- 
ritory in  which  they  are  working. 

Some  of  the  organizations  which  permit  the  establishment 
of  only  one  local  union  in  a  city  allow  local  unions  to  have 
branches.  These  branches  are  entirely  dominated  by  the  par- 
ent society,  and  exist  only  at  its  discretion.  Tlie  national 
union  of  carpenters  and  joiners,  desirous  of  maintaining 
unity  of  action  between  the  members  of  the  trade  in  each 
community,  at  first  chartered  only  one  union  in  each  place, 
but  allowed  a  local  union  to  establish  branches.  The  branches, 
though  holding  meetings  in  convenient  parts  of  the  city, 
were  kept  in  complete  subordination  to  the  parent  local. 


175]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  69 

Naturally,  they  were  dissatisfied  with  their  position,  and  in 
1886  the  system  was  abolished.^" 

The  linotype  machine  tenders  employed  in  the  printing 
industry  in  New  York  City  were  organized  for  a  time  as  a 
branch  of  the  local  union  of  compositors.  From  the  begin- 
ning the  International  Typographical  Union  has  permitted 
only  one  local  union  in  each  branch  of  the  trade  to  be  char- 
tered in  any  city.  It  desired  control,  however,  over  the 
machine  tenders,  who  formerly  had  independent  societies  of 
their  own.  Since  the  absorption  of  the  machine  tenders  by 
the  Typographical  Union,  only  one  branch  of  machine 
tenders,  namely,  that  in  New  York  City,  has  been  in  exist- 
ence. In  all  other  places  they  have  been  absorbed  into  the 
local  unions  of  compositors.  The  branch  in  New  York  was 
strictly  controlled  by  the  union  of  compositors,  Local  Union 
No.  6,  to  which  all  dues  were  paid  and  without  whose  con- 
sent no  funds  could  be  expended.  The  branch  held  a  meet- 
ing each  month  immediately  prior  to  the  meetings  of  Local 
Union  No.  6,  in  order  that  any  course  of  action  which  it 
proposed  might  be  referred  promptly  to  the  parent  local. 
Members  of  the  branch  might  attend  the  meetings  of  Local 
Union  No.  6.  The  branch  had  one  representative  on  the 
conference  board  which  bargained  with  the  employers  and 
one  representative  on  the  executive  board  of  the  local  union. 
The  branch  has  been  used  by  a  few  organizations  as  a 
method  of  organizing  the  members  of  the  trade  in  those 
places  where  they  are  not  sufficiently  numerous  to  maintain 
a  society.  In  most  unions  isolated  members  are  attached  as 
individuals  to  the  nearest  local  unions,  and  they  have  the 
same  privileges  and  duties  as  any  other  members.  On  ac- 
count of  the  distance,  however,  they  are  usually  unable  to 
attend  its  meetings,  and,  unless  the  local  union  makes  partic- 
ular efiforts  to  bring  questions  to  their  attention,  lose  all 
voice  in  determining  the  policies  of  the  organization.  In  the 
Boot  and  Shoe  Workers'  Union  and  a  few  other  unions 
isolated  journeymen  do  not  belong  to  any  local  society,  but 


"Constitution,  i{ 


JO  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [176 

are  attached  to  the  headquarters  of  the  international  asso- 
ciation as  members-at-large.  They  pay  dues  directly  to 
headquarters,  are  entitled  to  all  international  benefits,  and 
may  vote  only  on  questions  submitted  to  all  the  members  of 
the  union.  Under  either  system  the  isolated  journeyman 
has  little  voice  in  the  affairs  of  the  association.  The  chief 
advantages  of  membership  to  him  are  apparently  that  he 
remains  eligible  to  sick,  death,  and  other  international  bene- 
fits, and  that  when  he  travels  in  search  of  work  he  is  ad- 
mitted to  any  local  union  without  payment  of  an  initiation 
fee. 

The  United  Brewery  Workmen  and  a  few  other  unions 
have  endeavored  to  confer  a  limited  degree  of  selfgovern- 
ment  upon  small  groups  of  isolated  members  by  organizing 
them  as  branches  of  the  nearest  local  society.  The  members 
of  the  branch  pay  to  the  parent  local  union  their  monthly 
dues  and  assessments  and  are  permitted  to  attend  its  meet- 
ings. If  not  near  enough  to  attend,  they  may  hold  separate 
meetings  at  which  they  may  vote  on  all  matters  under  con- 
sideration by  other  members  of  the  local  union.  They  can 
make  no  contracts  with  employers  nor  take  any  other  action 
without  the  consent  of  the  society  with  which  they  are 
afifiliated.  When  bridge  and  structural  iron  workers  who 
are  members  of  a  union  in  some  large  city  are  sent  away 
to  perform  work  in  some  isolated  community,  they  are  usu- 
ally permitted  to  organize  themselves  as  a  branch  of  the  local 
union  in  the  city  from  which  they  come. 

The  machine  textile  workers  perform  a  highly  specialized 
work  and  have  no  local  unions.  Only  a  few  are  found  in 
each  mill,  and  in  no  community  are  they  sufficiently  numer- 
ous to  maintain  a  society.  As  in  other  trades,  the  members 
in  each  shop  hold  meetings  occasionally.  They  elect  a  shop 
collector  and  a  grievance  committee  to  bargain  with  their 
employer.  The  national  association  groups  the  shops  under 
its  jurisdiction  into  four  district  unions.  In  the  eastern 
district  are  included  all  shops  in  the  State  of  Rhode  Island 
and  in  the  adjoining  portions  of  Massachusetts  and  Con- 


177]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  /I 

necticut ;  in  the  western  district,  the  shops  in  and  around 
New  York  City ;  in  the  northern  district,  the  shops  in  and 
around  Boston,  and  in  the  southern  district,  the  shops  in 
and  around  Philadelphia.  At  the  head  of  each  district  there 
are  two  directors  and  a  secretary.  Meetings  of  all  members 
in  the  district  are  held  regularly  at  some  central  point. 

The  Seamen  have  adopted  a  modified  form  of  the  branch 
system  suited  to  their  peculiar  needs.  Because  of  the  rov- 
ing character  of  the  sailor's  life,  they  cannot  be  attached  to 
a  particular  local  union.  The  seamen  of  the  Atlantic  Coast 
are  organized  into  a  single  district  union  with  headquarters 
in  Boston.  At  each  port  there  is  a  branch  in  charge  of  an 
agent.  The  members  belong  to  the  district  organization, 
not  to  a  branch,  but  may  take  part  in  the  meetings  of  the 
branch  at  any  port  where  they  may  be  stopping.  No  branch 
can  declare  a  strike,  expel  a  member,  or  take  any  other 
independent  action.  All  matters  of  any  importance  must  be 
referred  to  a  vote  of  the  district.  Even  the  agent  in  charge 
of  a  branch  is  not  elected  by  those  present  at  one  of  its  meet- 
ings, but  by  a  vote  of  the  members  of  the  entire  district.  In 
fact,  the  branch  is  merely  a  convenient  point  of  call  for  the 
members  in  journeying  up  and  down  the  coast,  where  they 
can  pay  their  dues  to  the  district  union  and  register  their 
vote  on  matters  under  discussion  by  the  district.  Save  in 
these  few  exceptional  instances  the  system  of  branches  has 
been  impracticable.  Each  member  is  affiliated  directly  with 
the  nearest  local  union,  and  unity  of  action  between  adja- 
cent local  unions  is  maintained  by  federating  them  into 
district  unions. 

In  the  great  majority  of  trades  there  has  not  been,  as  has 
been  the  case  among  the  coal  mine  workers,  a  gradual  expan- 
sion of  the  unit  of  government  from  local  to  district  and 
from  district  to  national  unions.  On  the  contrary,  almost 
invariably  the  first  federal  organization  of  the  craft  has 
borne  the  title  "  National "  or  "  International "  union,  and 
has  claimed  jurisdiction  over  all  local  societies  of  the  trade 


72  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [178 

in  the  United  States  or  on  the  whole  continent  of  America. 
Usually,  however,  these  so-called  national  or  international 
unions  have  been  able  in  the  beginning  to  organize  subor- 
dinate societies  in  only  a  few  of  the  more  important  centers 
of  the  industry.  Though  the  first  federal  organization  of 
machinists  and  blacksmiths,  formed  in  1859,  t>ore  the  ambi- 
tious title  of  "  Grand  Union  of  Machinists  and  Blacksmiths 
of  North  America,"  it  had  members  in  only  four  cities, 
Philadelphia,  Baltimore,  Reading,  Pennsylvania,  and  Wil- 
mington, Delaware.  The  territorial  jurisdiction  of  the  as- 
sociation expanded  rapidly,  however,  and  at  the  convention 
of  i860  delegates  were  present  from  cities  in  Pennsylvania, 
Maryland,  Delaware,  New  York,  New  Jersey,  Ohio,  Vir- 
ginia, Michigan,  Kentucky,  and  Massachusetts.-"  The 
Granite  Cutters'  International  Association  originated  among 
four  local  unions  of  granite  cutters  working  in  the  quarries 
of  Maine,  but  within  the  year  had  spread  over  New  England 
and  beyond  into  New  York,  Virginia,  and  Missouri.^! 

The  territorial  jurisdiction  of  the  early  national  organiza- 
tions, especially  those  established  prior  to  the  Civil  War,  was 
confined  diiefly  to  New  England,  the  Middle  Atlantic  States, 
and  the  States  of  the  Middle  West.  During  the  Civil  War 
the  few  scattered  branches  in  the  South  were  lost  to  the 
central  associations.  Since  the  Civil  War,  with  the  rise  of 
a  new  industrial  South,  branches  have  been  established  in 
ever  increasing  numbers  by  national  trade  unions  in  that 
part  of  the  country.  In  the  years  immediately  succeeding 
the  war  we  find  the  Iron  Molders'  Union  rapidly  extending 
its  jurisdiction  into  Louisiana,  Alabama,  Georgia,  Kansas, 
Texas,  and  California.--     In  1871  the  president  of  the  Ma- 

-°  In  March,  i860,  there  occurred  a  large  strike  in  the  Baldwin 
Locomotive  Works  in  Philadelphia.  At  once  the  officers  of  the 
so-called  national  union  communicated  with  unaffiliated  societies  of 
the  trade  in  other  cities  in  order  to  prevent  their  members  from 
coming  to  Philadelphia' to  act  as  strike  breakers.  The  strike  failed, 
but  as  a  result  of  the  correspondence  and  agitation  on  the  part  of 
the  national  officers  the  organization  spread  north,  south,  east,  and 
west  (Machinists  and  Blacksmiths'  Journal,  March,  June,  1872). 

"'  Granite  Cutters'  Journal,  August,  1877,  p.  5. 

"  Report  of  the  International  President,  in  Proceedings,  186". 


179]  AKEA    OF    FEDERATION  73 

chinists'  and  Blacksmiths'  International  Union  made  a  trip 
through  the  South,  and  organized  local  unions  in  Tennessee, 
Alabama,  Louisiana,  Georgia,  and  ^Mississippi.-^ 

Within  recent  years  the  territorial  jurisdiction  of  the  new 
national  unions  as  well  as  of  the  older  ones  has  been  ex- 
tended rapidly  over  the  South  and  over  the  States  west  of 
the  Mississippi.  Since  1890,  miners  in  the  outlying  coal 
fields  of  the  South  and  the  Far  West  have  been  brought 
under  the  banner  of  the  United  Mine  Workers  of  America. 
In  the  South  the  miners  of  Kentucky  and  Tennessee  were 
early  formed  into  a  subordinate  district  union.  In  some 
of  the  western  States  such  as  Kansas  and  Colorado,  where 
the  yield  of  coal  has  been  small  and  the  coal  has  been  used 
primarily  for  local  consumption,  the  workers  have  been  slow 
to  organize,  and  when  organized  have  remained  apart  in  in- 
dependent district  unions.  But  these  western  coal  fields 
have  greatly  increased  their  yield  and  have  begun  also  to 
encroach  on  each  other's  markets.  At  the  same  time,  the 
competition  in  coal  between  the  States  lining  the  opposite 
banks  of  the  Mississippi  River  has  formed  the  connecting 
link  between  the  East  and  the  West.-*  In  1893,  therefore, 
we  find  the  organizers  of  the  United  Mine  Workers  of 
America  welding  into  subordinate  districts  of  the  national 
union  the  coal  miners  of  Iowa,  Missouri,  Kansas,  Colorado, 
and  other  western  States.-^  The  movement  culminated  in 
1894  when  the  miners  of  eleven  States  and  one  Territory 
obeyed  the  orders  of  the  central  association  to  suspend 
work.^®  The  ensuing  industrial  depression  checked  the 
further  territorial  growth  of  the  national  union,  and  ulti- 
mately destroyed  the  outlying  district  unions.  During  the 
period  of  recovery  from  1896  to  1898  only  the  coal  miners 
of   the   central    district  and   of   Kentucky   and    Tennessee 

^Machinists  and  Blacksmiths'  Journal,  April,  1871,  p.  183. 

"  P.  "H.  Penna.  "  History  of  Conditions  in  Colorado  and  Kansas," 
in  ^United  Mine  Workers'  Journal.  April  2~,  1893. 

^  Report  of  the  President,  in  United  Mine  Workers'  Journal, 
April  13,  1893. 

*■  Report  of  the  Fifth  Annual  Convention.  1894;  United  Mine 
Workers'  Journal,  April  19,  1894,  p.  2.  See  also  ibid.,  May  3.  June 
14,  1894. 


74  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TR.VDE    UNIONS  [l8o 

remained  under  the  control  of  the  national  union.  The 
United  Mine  Workers  were  for  a  time  checked  in  their 
effort  to  gain  control  over  the  territory  west  of  the  Mississ- 
ippi by  a  rival  organization,  the  Western  Federation  of 
Miners,  which  claimed  jurisdiction  over  the  coal  workers  as 
well  as  the  miners  of  gold,  silver,  lead,  and  other  metals. 
At  present,  however,  the  United  Mine  Workers  have  subordi- 
nate lodges  in  many  outlying  coal  fields,  even  in  such  newly 
developed  ones  as  those  of  Texas,  New  Mexico,  Utah, 
Washington,  and  British  Columbia. 

Certain  so-called  national  unions  have  still  a  very  limited 
territorial  jurisdiction  because  the  industries  in  w'hich  their 
members  work  are  localized  in  one  small  portion  of  the 
country.^^  The  National  Mule  Spinners'  Association  of 
America  has  not  a  single  branch  outside  of  New  England. 
The  reason  is  that,  except  in  some  of  the  older  textile  cen- 
ters, the  ring  frame,  which  can  be  easily  managed  by  women 
and  children,  is  replacing  the  mule.  Mule  spinners  are  sel- 
dom found,  therefore,  in  the  southern  cotton  mills  or,  indeed, 
in  any  of  the  newer  textile  centers,  but  are  employed  chiefly  in 
Fall  River,  New  Bedford,  and  a  few  other  New  England 
towns.  The  elastic  goring  weavers  form  another  vanishing 
craft,  wholly  confined  to  New  England.  They  make  the 
elastic  goring  used  for  congress  shoes,  which  are  now  rap- 
idly disappearing.  In  1904  the  federal  union  of  the  trade 
embraced  only  six  branches  in  various  New  England 
towns ;  and  in  1906  the  Elastic  Goring  Weavers'  Amalga- 
mated Association  of  the  United  States  of  America  con- 
sisted of  two  branches  located  in  Brockton  and  Easthampton, 
and  had  a  total  membership  of  about  ninety.-^  The  table 
knife  grinders  are  employed  in  an  industry  almost  entirely 
localized  in  New  England,  and  the  Table  Knife  Grinders' 
National  Union  has  consisted  of  about  eight  branches  in 
various  small  towns  of  Massachusetts  and  Connecticut.    The 

^  See  page  57. 

"  Report  of  Branches  of  Elastic  Goring  Weavers'  Amalgamated 
Association  of  the  United  States  for  month  ending  January  31, 
1904;  MS.  Annual  Report  of  the  General  Secretary,  1906. 


l8l]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  75 

jurisdiction  of  the  Amalgamated  Lace  Operatives  of  Amer- 
ica is  similarly  limited  because  the  lace  industry  is  concen- 
trated, with  the  exception  of  one  factory  in  Rhode  Island,  in 
East  Pliiladelphia  and  a  few  small  towns  of  eastern  Penn- 
sylvania. 

On  the  other  hand,  a  wide  territorial  jurisdiction  is 
attained  by  the  federal  unions  of  such  trades  as  building 
mechanics,  printers,  bakers,  and  machinists,  which  can  be 
found  in  every  town  and  even  in  many  villages  in  all  parts 
of  the  country.  In  1891  the  secretary  of  the  United  Broth- 
erhood of  Carpenters  and  Joiners  was  able  to  report  that 
his  organization,  which  at  the  time  of  its  origin  ten  years 
before  had  consisted  of  local  unions  in  eleven  of  the  more 
important  cities  of  the  East  and  the  Aliddle  West,  embraced 
seven  hundred  and  ninety-eight  locals,  situated  in  every 
State  and  Territory  of  the  United  States  except  Alaska.^* 
Similarly,  the  International  Typographical  Union  and  the 
Bricklayers'  and  Masons'  International  Union  have  branches 
in  ever)'  important  city  of  the  United  States. 

Very  early  in  the  history  of  federal  trade  unions  in  the 
United  States  their  jurisdiction  was  extended  over  local 
organizations  of  the  craft  in  Canada.  The  federal  union  of 
soft  stone  cutters,  which  was  formed  in  1853,  ^ore  in  1858 
the  name  "  Journeymen  Stone  Cutters  of  the  United  States 
and  Canada,"  and  possessed  jurisdiction  over  local  societies 
of  the  trade  not  only  in  the  United  States,  but  also  in  To- 
ronto and  Hamilton,  Canada.^"  Other  trades,  like  the  brick- 
layers or  granite  cutters,  desiring  to  create  a  federal  or- 
ganization which  should  embrace  local  unions  of  the  craft 
anywhere  on  the  continent  of  America,  adopted  at  the  first 
convention  such  titles  as  "  International  Union,"  or  "  Asso- 
ciation of  North  America,"  though  Canadian  unions  were 
not  admitted  to  some  of  them  until  many  years  later. 

While  the  American  workmen  have  always  desired  trade- 

"The  Carpenter,  August,  1891. 

'"  Circular  of  the  Journeymen  Stone  Cutters'  Association  of  the 
United  States  and  Canada,  April,  May,  1858. 


76  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [l82 

union  amalgamation  with  their  Canadian  fellow-craftsmen, 
many  Canadian  workmen  have  favored  the  creation  of  sep- 
arate national  unions.  Until  recently  the  movement  for 
separate  national  unions  made  little  headway,  partly  because 
very  few  trades  in  Canada  had  a  sufficient  number  of  local 
organizations  to  maintain  satisfactorily  separate  national 
unions.  Prior  to  1900  probably  less  than  three  hundred 
local  unions,  with  a  total  membership  of  not  more  than 
fifteen  thousand,  existed  in  the  whole  Dominion  of  Canada. 
Of  the  societies  affiliated  with  international  associations,  the 
five  railway  brotherhoods  claimed  the  larger  portion.  Few 
of  the  international  unions  possessed  more  than  one  or  two 
Canadian  branches.  Since  1900  the  trade-union  movement 
in  Canada  has  advanced  rapidly.  In  1902  the  Canadian 
unions  numbered  eleven  hundred,  an  increase  of  eight  hun- 
dred in  three  years;  and  the  membership  aggregated  about 
one  hundred  thousand.  Two  years  later  there  were  one 
thousand  five  hundred  and  sixty-seven  local  unions.^^  In 
the  city  of  Toronto  alone  the  number  of  local  unions  in- 
creased from  forty-eight  to  one  hundred  and  eighteen  be- 
tween 1900  and  1902.^^  Since  1902  the  membership  of 
Canadian  unions  has  grown  at  the  rate  of  about  five  thou- 
sand a  year.  Unions  are  being  reorganized  even  in  the  newly 
developed  regions  of  Manitoba  and  the  Northwest  Territory, 
and  in  British  Columbia  over  tvvo  hundred  local  unions  had 
been  formed  in  1905.  With  the  growth  of  the  Canadian 
labor  movement  the  spirit  of  nationalism,  as  opposed  to  in- 
ternationalism, assumed  new  life. 

The  center  of  the  national  trade-union  movement  in 
Canada  has  been  the  longer  settled  Province  of  Quebec, 
where  the  French  element  predominates  and  French  is  the 
language  chiefly  spoken.  In  Montreal  and  Quebec  the  Eng- 
lish-speaking workmen  are  in  a  hopeless  minority.  Realizing 
their  inability  to  influence  the  policy  of  the  union,  they 
largely  remain  apart  from  the  labor  movement.    In  Montreal 

"  Shoe  Workers'  Journal,  October,  1902,  p.  14. 
^^  American    Federationist,    December,    1903,    p.    1283;    December, 
1904,  p.  1075. 


183]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  "JJ 

there  are,  indeed,  local  unions  composed  wholly  of  English- 
speaking  machinists  and  printers.  A  few  local  unions  with 
a  mixed  membership  of  both  English  and  French  workers 
have  also  been  organized,  but  most  of  the  unions  are  com- 
posed entirely  of  French  Canadians.  These  French  Canad- 
•ians  are  not  in  sympathy  with  the  international  trade-union 
movement.  Their  passionate  fondness  for  their  traditions 
and  their  loyalty  to  the  French  language  isolate  them  to  a 
considerable  extent  from  the  English-speaking  people  of  the 
United  States  and  Canada.  The  desire  of  the  Canadian 
premier  for  "  a  united  people,  who  are  Canadians  first  and 
foremost  and  French  and  English  only  incidentally,"  has 
not  yet  been  attained ;  and  one  manifestation  of  this  lack 
of  unity  is  the  presence  of  independent  local  unions  in  Mon- 
treal and  Quebec.** 

On  the  other  hand,  in  the  Province  of  Ontario,  settled 
largely  by  English  or  American  immigrants,  the  policy  of 
internationalism  has  always  been  favored.  That  province 
has  felt  most  strongly  the  influence  of  the  labor  movement 
in  the  United  States.  In  fact,  the  Canadian  branches  of  the 
international  unions  were  confined  for  many  years  almost 
wholly  to  Ontario,  particularly  to  the  cities  of  Toronto  and 
Hamilton.  Moreover,  Ontario  has  always  been  the  best 
organized  part  of  Canada;  and  today  nearly  one  half  of  the 
local  unions  in  the  Dominion  are  located  in  that  province. 
The  workers  in  the  provinces  of  Western  Canada,  which  are 
now  being  industrially  developed,  are  also  English-speak- 
ing. Their  unions  have  been  founded  largely  by  organizers 
from  the  United  States,  and  they  are  heartily  in  s}Tnpathy 
with  the  international  movement. 

The  national  trade-union  movement  in  Canada  has  re- 
ceived encouragement  from  the  clerg}-  and  from  the  manu- 
facturers. In  some  instances  the  manufacturers  have  even 
forced  their  employees  to  withdraw  from  the  international 
unions  and  join  the  Canadian  associations  of  the  trade.  For 
example,   the   shoe  manufacturers  of   ^Montreal   have   for- 

**  American  Federationist,  October,  1903,  p.  1034. 


78  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [  1 84 

bidden  their  workers  to  belong  to  the  branches  which  the 
Boot  and  Shoe  Workers'  Union  has  established  in  that 
city,  and  have  urged  them  to  join  the  independent  Canadian 
organizations  of  shoemaker s.^^  The  manufacturers  are  in 
favor  of  "national  unionism"  partly,  perhaps,  because  they 
wish  the  Canadian  workers  to  patronize  goods  bearing  a 
national  instead  of  an  international  label.  Largely,  how- 
ever, their  attitude  is  ascribable  to  the  fear  of  the  strong 
financial  and  moral  support  and  assistance  extended  in  time 
of  strike  by  the  international  unions  to  their  Canadian 
branches.  American  labor  leaders  argue  that  the  motives  of 
the  manufacturers  are  not  wholly  patriotic,  since  many  who 
are  enthusiastic  advocates  of  national  trade  unionism  have 
affiliated  themselves  with  the  Canadian  branches  of  interna- 
tional manufacturers'  associations. 

The  fight  against  the  international  unions  culminated  in 
1903  with  the  introduction  into  the  Canadian  Senate  of  a  bill 
which  provided  that  any  person  not  a  British  subject  who 
incited  Canadian  workmen  to  engage  in  a  strike  would  be 
guilty  of  an  indictable  ofTence,  punishable  by  two  years'  im- 
prisonment.^^ Interference  in  local  affairs  by  trade-union 
officials  from  over  the  border,  particularly  at  the  time  of  a 
strike,  has  been  especially  irritating  to  the  Canadian  man- 
ufacturers, whose  influence  was  added  to  that  of  the  national 
unionists  in  favor  of  the  bill.  The  measure  failed,  however, 
to  pass.^** 

The  national  unionists  in  Canada  desire  to  form  a  general 
federation   of   trades   which   shall   be   independent   of  the 

^*  Shoe  Workers'  Journal,  August,  1902.  p.  21. 

^^  Official  Journal  [Amalgamated  Meat  Cutters  and  Butcher  Work- 
men], July.  1903,  p.  31;  American  Federationist,  June,  1903,  p.  469; 
December,  1903.  p.  1283. 

^°  The  bill  read  as  follows :  "  The  Criminal  Code,  1892,  is  hereby 
amended  by  adding  thereto  the  following  section  524:  'Every  one  is 
guilty  of  an  indictable  offense  and  liable  to  two  years  imprisonment 
who,  being  a  person  not  a  British  subject,  whether  residing  in  or 
out  of  Canada,  does  in  Canada  incite,  urge,  or  induce  workmen,  by 
any  act  or  means  whatsoever,  to  quit  any  employment  in  which  they 
may  be  engaged,  or  to  enter  upon  any  strike  with  the  object  of 
enforcing  additional  wages  or  terms  of  employment  from  their 
employer.' " 


185]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  79 

American  Federation  of  Labor.  The  Dominion  Trades  and 
Labor  Congress,  which  has  been  in  existence  since  1884,  is 
a  branch  of  the  American  Federation  of  Labor,  and  bears 
substantially  the  same  relation  to  it  as  do  the  state  federa- 
tions of  labor  in  the  United  States.  Its  primary  function 
is  the  promotion  in  Canada  of  legislation  favorable  to  work- 
men.^^  Until  1902  the  Dominion  Trades  and  Labor  Con- 
gress admitted  to  representation  not  only  local  branches  of 
the  international  trade  unions,  but  also  independent  Cana- 
dian associations  and  local  assemblies  of  the  Knights  of 
Labor.  In  that  year,  however,  a  rule  was  adopted  excluding 
these  local  assemblies  and  independent  trade  unions,  where- 
upon the  associations  outlawed  by  the  congress  formed  an 
independent  National  Federation  of  Trades,  and  established 
local  labor  federations  in  a  few  cities  such  as  Montreal  and 
Quebec.  There  do  exist  in  Canada,  nevertheless,  two 
national  associations  whose  affiliation  with  corresponding 
organizations  in  the  United  States  is  not  desired  and  is  not 
perhaps  possible,  and  these  are  allowed  representation  in  the 
Dominion  Trades  and  Labor  Congress.  They  are  the  Fed- 
erated Association  of  Letter  Carriers  of  Canada,  composed 
of  government  employees,  and  the  National  Association  of 
Marine  Engineers  of  Canada,  whose  members  are  under 
strict  government  regulation.^* 

The  same  economic  forces  which  led  to  the  formation  of 
national  unions  in  the  United  States  seem  likely  to  bring 
about  the  ultimate  triumph  of  the  continental  trade-union 
movement  in  North  America.  While  goods  of  Canadian 
manufacture  are  not  largely  imported  into  the  United  States, 
American  products  compete  with  those  of  home  manufacture 
in  the  markets  of  Canada.     The   pioneer   factories  of  a 

"  In  1903  the  Dominion  Trades  and  Labor  Congress  applied  to 
the  American  Federation  of  Labor  for  sole  power  to  issue  charters 
to  local  federations  of  trades  in  Canada  This  request  was  refused 
as  being  opposed  to  the  spirit  of  complete  internationalism.  The 
American  Federation  of  Labor  requires,  however,  that  the  central 
labor  unions  which  it  establishes  in  various  cities  of  Canada  shall 
become  affiliated  with  the  Dominion  Trades  and  Labor  Congress. 

^''  Report  of  Proceedings  of  the  Nineteenth  Annual  Convention  of 
the  Trades  and  Labor  Congress  of  Canada,  1903,  pp.  18,  19,  42,  47,  51. 


8o  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [l86 

newly  developing  Canadian  industry  are  often  manned  with 
trained  workers  from  the  United  States.  American  work- 
men are  also  imported  into  the  Dominion  to  act  as  strike 
breakers.  On  the  other  hand,  the  French  Canadian  shoe- 
makers have  been  pouring  into  New  England  for  some  years. 
Local  unions  of  lasters  in  such  centers  of  shoe  manufactur- 
ing as  IMarlboro  or  Haverhill  reported  in  1890  that  one  half 
of  the  membership  consisted  of  French  Canadians.  In  fact, 
because  of  the  inferior  skill  of  the  Canadian  lasters,  the 
Lasters'  Protective  Union  of  the  United  States  was  led  to 
seek  control  over  the  Canadian  unions  of  the  trade  for  the 
purpose  of  regulating  the  rules  of  apprenticeship  prevailing 
in  the  shoe  factories  of  the  Dominion.^^ 

The  national  movement  in  Canada  has  never  attained 
great  proportions.  According  to  one  estimate,  of  fifteen 
hundred  local  trade  unions  in  Canada  thirteen  hundred  were 
affiliated  in  1903  with  continental  associations.*'^  The  war 
against  nationalism  has  been  waged  with  considerable  force 
even  in  such  strongholds  of  the  movement  as  Montreal  and 
Quebec.  Many  of  the  independent  unions  in  Montreal  have 
allied  themselves  with  the  international  trade  unions,  and 
all  new  unions  have  been  chartered  as  branches  of  these  con- 
tinental associations.  In  1902,  after  an  independent  exist- 
ence of  some  years,  the  Longshoremen's  Union  of  Montreal, 
with  thirty-five  hundred  members,  the  largest  local  union  in 
Canada,  joined  the  international  union  of  the  trade.*^  The 
Federated  Trades  and  Labor  Council  of  Montreal,  which 
began  life  about  1899  as  a  branch  of  the  American  Federa- 
tion of  Labor  with  representation  from  four  local  unions 
of  different  trades,  now  claims  jurisdiction  over  fifty  local 
unions  with  a  total  membership  of  twenty-five  thousand.*^ 

Probably  the  sharpest  struggle  to  gain  an  entrance  into 
Montreal  has  been  waged  by  the  international  union  of  the 
boot  and  shoe  workers.    There  are  several  large  shoe  fac- 

^®The  Laster,  May  15,  July  15,  August  15,  1890. 
*"  Official  Journal  [Amalgamated  Meat  Cutters  and  Butcher  Work- 
men], June,  1903,  pp.  1-3. 
"  Shoe  Workers'  Journal,  September,  1902,  p.  20. 
*^  American  Federationist,  October,  1903,  p.  1035. 


1 8/]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  8l 

tories  in  IMontreal,  and  the  city  is  one  of  the  most  important 
shoe  centers  in  Canada.  For  some  years  the  shoe  workers 
of  Montreal  were  organized  into  independent  unions.  When, 
in  1901,  the  international  union  of  the  boot  and  shoe  work- 
ers estabHshed  a  branch  in  Montreal,  the  independent  socie- 
ties combined  for  more  effectual  resistance  against  this 
invasion  under  the  title  ''  Canadian  Federation  of  Shoe- 
makers."^''' The  independents  were  aided  by  the  manufac- 
turers, who  forced  some  of  the  journeymen  to  abandon  the 
international  union  and  join  the  Canadian  Federation  of 
Shoemakers.  Notwithstanding  this  opposition,  the  inter- 
national union  had  succeeded  by  1902  in  organizing  four 
local  branches  of  shoemakers,  and  by  1903  six  branches  had 
been  formed;  but  the  four  independent  unions  of  the  trade 
in  Montreal  still  maintained  their  existence. 

The  city  of  Quebec  remains  the  stronghold  of  the  inde- 
pendent movement.  As  yet  no  Federated  Trades  and  Labor 
Council  has  been  established  in  Quebec  by  the  American 
Federation  of  Labor.  The  city  is  the  headquarters  of  the 
independent  national  federation  of  trades,  and  at  a  meeting 
of  this  body  held  there  in  1903,  forty-two  of  its  independent 
local  societies  were  represented. 

Mexico  is  still  in  the  early  stage  of  industrial  develop- 
ment, and  branches  have  been  established  there  by  only  a 
few  international  associations.  The  federal  trade  unions 
which  have  organized  local  unions  in  Mexico  are  the  asso- 
ciations of  railway  employees  and  members  of  building 
trades  and  other  crafts  which  form,  in  a  new  country,  the 
advance  guard  of  industrial  invasion.  Recently  an  attempt 
has  been  made  to  extend  the  jurisdiction  of  the  North 
American  unions  over  the  outlying  possessions  of  the  United 
States — xA.laska,  the  Canal  Zone,  and  the  islands  of  Porto 
Rico,  Hawaii,  and  the  Philippines.  The  United  Brother- 
hood of  Carpenters  and  Joiners  has  local  branches  in  Porto 
Rico  and  Hawaii.  The  International  Typographical  Union 
has  branches  in   Porto  Rico,   Hawaii,  and   Alaska.      The 

*'  Shoe  Workers'  Journal,  August,  1902,  p.  21 ;  Proceedings,  1904, 
pp.  6q.  97. 
6 


82  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRx\DE    UNIONS  [l88 

Machinists'  International  Union  has  organized  subordinate 
divisions  in  Porto  Rico  and  the  Canal  Zone,  and  the  Inter- 
national Brotherhood  of  Electrical  Workers  has  chartered 
a  "branch  in  the  Philippines. 

The  efforts  which  have  been  made  to  bring  the  workers 
in  the  outlying  possessions  of  the  United  States  into  the 
labor  movement  of  the  continent  have  been  most  successful 
in  Porto  Rico.  Local  unions  have  been  established  on  the 
island  by  the  international  unions  of  cigar  makers,  long- 
shoremen, painters,  decorators  and  paperhangers,  carpenters 
and  joiners,  machinists,  printers,  and  others.  During  1904 
forty-two  branch  societies  of  the  various  continental  asso- 
ciations were  organized,  and  since  then  the  growth  of  the 
movement  has  steadily  continued.  The  American  Federa- 
tion of  Labor  has  issued  charters  to  local  associations  of 
agricultural  and  other  workers,  and  has  established  central 
labor  unions  or  city  federations  of  trades  at  San  Juan, 
Ponce,  and  other  places.  All  Porto  Rican  labor  organiza- 
tions affiliated  with  international  unions  are  united  together 
in  the  "  Federacion  Libre  "  or  Free  Federation  of  Workmen, 
which  corresponds  to  the  state  branches  of  the  American 
Federation  of  Labor.  There  is  a  rival  federation  of  trades 
known  as  the  "  Federacion  Regional,"  but  all  of  the  unions 
which  compose  it  are  confined  apparently  to  San  Juan. 
During  the  visit  of  Mr.  Gompers  to  the  island  in  1904  he 
endeavored  to  bring  about  an  amalgamation  of  the  two 
federations,  but  was  unsuccessful.  Officials  of  the  Amer- 
ican Federation  of  Labor  say  that  the  Federacion  Regional 
is  not  a  bona  fide  labor  organization,  but  is  designed  partly 
for  political  purposes,  and  is  engineered  by  certain  local 
politicians.** 

In  the  Hawaiian  Islands  practically  all  the  white  mechan- 
ics of  Honolulu  are  members  of  local  unions  affiliated  with 
international  associations  of  the  North  American  continent, 
and  these  local  unions  are  allied  into  a  trades'  council  main- 
tained by  the  American  Federation  of  Labor.     But  Chinese 

*•  American  Federationist,  April,  1904,  pp.  293-297 ;  May,  1904,  p. 
415;  December,  1904,  p.  1076. 


189]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  83 

and  Japanese  are  now  rapidly  taking  the  places  of  the  whites 
in  every  trade.  In  consequence,  the  white  mechanics  are 
rapidly  leaving  the  island,  and  the  trade-union  movement  is 
declining,  so  that  the  total  membership  of  ten  local  organiza- 
tions affiliated  with  the  Honolulu  Trades  and  Labor  Council 
in  Alay,  1901,  had  by  May,  1903,  shrunk  from  about  five 
hundred  to  one  hundred  and  eighty-seven.*'^ 

The  conquest  of  the  Philippine  Islands  by  the  United 
States  brought  to  the  Filipino  workers  the  conception  of 
trade  unionism.  In  1899,  shortly  after  the  American  inva- 
sion, they  made  their  first  attempt  to  organize  unions,  and 
societies  of  barbers,  cigar  makers,  tobacco  workers,  carpen- 
ters, wood  workers,  painters,  lithographers,  and  others 
rapidly  appeared.  A  few  groups  of  American  workmen 
who  had  been  attracted  to  the  islands  after  the  annexation 
organized  themselves  as  branches  of  the  trade  unions  at 
home.  The  Filipinos  have  avoided  all  alliances  with  the 
North  American  associations.  They  have  not  imitated  the 
American  method  of  forming  federations  of  the  local  socie- 
ties of  each  trade  and  of  further  federating  the  federations 
into  general  labor  unions.  All  their  local  societies  are  united 
irrespective  of  trade  divisions  into  the  Democratic  Labor 
Union  of  the  Philippines.  Agents  of  the  American  Federa- 
tion of  Labor  have  endeavored  to  persuade  them  to  adopt 
the  American  method  of  organization  and  affiliate  them- 
selves with  the  continental  unions,  but  so  far  the  Filipinos 
have  held  aloof. ^"^ 

An  ideal  of  the  trade  unionists  is  ultimately  to  unite  the 
workers  of  the  world  into  vast  international  bodies.  Social- 
ism is  a  world  movement,  then  why  not  trade  unionism? 
Not  in  America  alone,  but  in  Europe  and  Australasia  as 
well  national  unions  are  expanding  into  continental  associa- 
tions. International  Workingmen's  Congresses  are  held  in 
Europe  frequently,  and  the  closest  cooperation  often  exists 
between  the  trade  unions  of  the  various  countries.     The 

**  American  Federationist,  December,  1903,  p.  1269. 
"Ibid.,  October,  1903,  pp.  1021-1031. 


84  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [iQO 

workers  of  New  South  Wales,  Victoria,  West  Australia, 
South  Australia,  and  Queensland  hold  an  Australasian 
Trade  Union  Congress  at  periodic  intervals,  and  though 
united  action  is  hindered,  as  in  the  case  of  strikes,  by  the 
existence  of  compulsory  arbitration  in  some  states,  a  close 
federation  of  the  trade  unions  in  all  Australasia  is  much 
favored.*'  The  next  step  should  naturally  be  the  convoca- 
tion of  intercontinental  congresses  and  the  creation  of  inter- 
continental federations. 

Much  the  same  reasons  which  in  the  beginning  led  to  the 
formation  of  national  trade  unions  are  now  being  urged  in 
favor  of  intercontinental  unions.  High  national  tariff  walls 
are  supposed  to  prevent  the  profits  of  the  manufacturer  and 
the  wages  of  the  workman  in  a  country  from  being  lowered 
by  the  competition  of  imported  goods  made  by  cheap  for- 
eign labor.  In  free-trade  England,  however,  the  invasion 
of  the  home  market  by  foreign  goods  is  attributed  by  some 
to  the  narrow  policy  pursued  by  English  trade  unionists. 
Thus,  the  fact  that  German  steel  castings,  Swedish  ready- 
made  doors,  or  other  foreign  products  can  be  bought  in 
England  for  a  smaller  price  than  goods  made  at  nearby 
mills  is  ascribed  by  one  writer  to  the  enforcement  of  two 
policies  by  English  trade  unions.  The  first  of  these  is  the 
ca'  canny  or  go-easy  policy,  by  which  the  stint  of  work,  and 
hence  the  daily  output  of  a  factory,  is  arbitrarily  limited.*^ 
The  second  is  the  opposition  to  the  introduction  of  machin- 
ery and  other  labor-saving  devices.  Assertions  regarding 
the  extent  and  influence  of  such  policies  are  exceedingly 
difficult  to  prove.  They  suggest,  however,  that  if  trade- 
union  demands  can  influence  the  manufacturers'  control  of 
home  or  foreign  markets,  world-wide  collective  bargaining 
by  the  workers  will  soon  be  needed.  The  creation  of  a  great 
centralized  strike  fund  supported  by  all  organizations  of  a 
trade  in  the  world  has  been  suggested  as  a  means  of  coping 

*^  American  Federationist,  June,  1903,  pp.  463,  464. 

*'"If  two  Scotsmen  are  walking  together  and  one  walks  too 
quickly  for  the  other,  he  says  to  him,  '  Ca'  canny,  mon,  ca'  canny,' 
which  means  'Go  easy,  man,  go  easy'"  (E.  A.  Pratt,  Trade  Union- 
ism and  British  Industry,  p.  22). 


191]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  85 

with  gigantic  trusts  and  powerful  anti-union  alliances  of 
employers.*'-'  In  case  of  a  serious  and  wide-reaching  strike 
in  one  country,  money  is  sent  frequently  to  the  strikers  by 
the  workers  of  other  lands,  and  this  custom  seems  to  be 
growing. 

The  most  potent  reason  for  world-wide  trade  unionism 
is  the  international  movement  of  the  labor  supply.  One 
serious  evil  from  the  wage-earners'  point  of  view  has  been 
the  importation  of  foreign  laborers  on  contract,  particu- 
larly to  act  as  strike  breakers.  As  early  as  1831  the  master 
printers  of  New  York  secured  by  advertisements  in  Eng- 
land and  Scotland  foreign  journeymen  printers  to  take  the 
places  of  their  employees  who  had  been  ordered  on  strike 
by  the  New  York  Typographical  Society.'^"  Again,  to  illus- 
trate by  an  instance  occurring  many  years  later,  in  1882, 
when  the  boiler  makers  and  iron  ship  builders  of  New  York 
City  went  on  strike,  several  firms  sent  to  England  for  men.®^ 
On  this  occasion,  however,  the  president  of  the  Interna- 
tional Brotherhood  of  Boiler  Makers  and  Ship  Builders  and 
Helpers  cabled  to  the  secretary  of  the  boiler  makers'  union 
of  Great  Britain,  and  as  a  result  not  a  man  could  be  hired 
in  England.  The  American  workers  have  protected  them- 
selves against  such  importations  by  securing  the  adoption 
of  a  Federal  statute  forbidding  the  importation  of  workers 
into  their  country  on  contract.  Laborers  imported  on  con- 
tract have  always  formed,  however,  only  a  small  part  of 
the  stream  of  immigrants  pouring  into  the  United  States. 
This  invasion  of  foreigners  still  continues,  and  prevents 
unions  otherwise  strong  from  regulating  the  supply  of 
workers  in  the  trade  and  thus  influencing  wages.  The 
American  unions  have  desired  protection  from  the  compe- 
tition of  foreign  workers  similar  to  the  protection  accorded 
to  American  manufacturers  from  the  competition  of  for- 
eign goods. 

^'For  example,  see  the  Shoe  Workers'  Journal,  September,  1902, 
p.  19. 

°"  Historical  Sketch  in  the  Constitution  of  the  New  \ork  Typo- 
graphical Association  as  amended  in  1833. 

"  Simonds  and  McEnnis. 


86  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS  [^92 

In  the  absence  of  legal  restriction  on  immigration,  the 
unions  have  tried  in  several  ways  to  protect  themselves. 
One  method,  undoubtedly  a  very  crude  one,  has  been  to 
discourage  further  immigration  by  charging  a  heavy  initia- 
tion fee  for  admission  to  the  union.  The  imposition  of  such 
a  fee  results  practically  in  exclusion  from  the  union;  and 
if  the  trade  is  strongly  organized  and  the  members  con- 
sistently refuse  to  work  with  non-union  men,  the  immigrant 
finds  difficulty  in  securing  work  at  his  trade.  Such  a  policy 
is  pursued  by  the  American  wire  weavers  who  make  the 
wire  cloth  used  in  the  manufacture  of  paper.  The  trade  is 
small,  consisting  of  only  about  three  or  four  hundred  mem- 
bers, practically  all  of  whom  are  controlled  by  the  American 
Wire  Weavers'  Protective  Association.  Entrance  to  the 
craft  is  restricted  by  stringent  apprenticeship  regulations, 
yet  the  union  has  been  handicapped  greatly  by  the  immi- 
gration of  English  and  Scotch  wire  weavers  who  are 
attracted  to  this  country  by  the  high  wages.  To  remedy  this 
condition,  the  American  wire  weavers  prohibit  European 
immigrants  from  joining  the  union  by  imposing  on  them 
an  initiation  fee  of  five  hundred  dollars,  and,  by  refusing  to 
work  in  the  same  factory  with  non-unionists,  prevent  them 
from  finding  employment.  The  Lace  Curtain  Operatives 
pursue  a  similar  policy.  The  trade,  like  that  of  the  wire 
weavers,  is  small,  and  is  controlled  almost  wholly  by  the 
union.  At  the  same  time,  the  lace  workers  are  threatened 
by  an  influx  of  foreigners.  A  uniform  initiation  fee  of 
twenty  dollars  is  charged  by  all  local  branches,  and  many 
desire  to  make  it  much  higher.  Recently  the  officers  of  the 
union  have  been  given  discretion  to  increase  the  amount  of 
the  'initiation  fee  during  periods  when  the  industry  is  dull. 
The  European  unions  of  lace  workers  must  be  notified  each 
time  the  amount  of  the  fee  is  changed;  since,  however,  the 
industry  is  fitful,  busy  and  prosperous  periods  of  a  few 
weeks  alternating  quickly  with  periods  of  depression,  they 
cannot  be  kept  informed  of  all  the  changes  in  the  amount 
of  the  initiation  fee. 


193]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  8^ 

Unless  a  union  controls  most  members  of  the  trade,  the 
policy  of  exclusion  is  not  successful,  since  the  immigrant 
can  find  work  in  the  non-union  or  open  shop.  Most  organi- 
zations, therefore,  try  in  every  way  to  bring  foreigners  into 
the  union,  and  to  facilitate  this  have  sometimes  entered  into 
agreements  with  European  associations,  particularly  those 
of  Great  Britain.  To  minimize  the  competition  of  immi- 
grant iron  molders,  the  president  of  the  Iron  Molders' 
Union  of  North  America  proposed  as  early  as  1867  an  alli- 
ance with  English  and  Scotch  unions  of  the  trade.''-  Nothing 
was  accomplished  until  1872,  when  an  agreement  was  entered 
into  with  the  Friendly  Society  of  Iron  Founders  of  England, 
Ireland  and  Wales.  By  the  terms  of  this  agreement  the 
Iron  Molders'  Union  of  North  America  agreed  to  admit, 
without  payment  of  an  initiation  fee,  journeymen  bearing 
clearance  cards  from  the  Friendly  Society.  On  their  part, 
the  members  of  the  Friendly  Society  agreed  not  to  enter 
into  written  contracts  binding  them  to  work  in  any  foundry 
of  the  United  States  or  Canada  where  the  Molders  were  on 
strike.  The  society  promised  also  to  inflict  punishment, 
when  opportunity  should  arise,  on  any  member  who  failed 
to  deposit  his  card  with  the  American  union  within  one 
week  after  his  arrival  in  America. ^^  A  little  later  it  agreed 
to  admit,  without  payment  of  an  initiation  fee,  members  of 
the  American  union  who  came  to  Great  Britain.  The  Cigar 
jMakers'  International  Union  of  America  entered  into  a 
similar  agreement  with  the  Cigar  Makers'  Mutual  Asso- 
ciation of  England  about  1880,^*  and  is  ready  at  the  present 
day  to  accept  cigar  makers  belonging  to  foreign  societies 
without  payment  of  an  initiation  fee,  provided  the  foreign 
societies  grant  to  its  members  the  same  privilege.'"'^  The 
Piano  and  Organ  Workers'  Union  accepts  members  in  good 
standing  with  organizations  of  the  trade  in  foreign  coun- 

"  Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings,  1867. 

"Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings  of  the  Iron  Molders' 
Union,  1872;  International  Journal  [Iron  Molders],  September,  1872. 

"  Report  of  the  President,  in  Supplement  to  Cigar  Makers'  Official 
Journal,  September,  1880. 

*  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  October,  1881,  pp.  5,  10. 


88  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [l94 

tries  without  payment  of  an  initiation  fee,  provided  they 
join  within  four  weeks  after  their  arrival  in  America.  A 
similar  policy  has  been  followed  by  the  American  unions  of 
printers,  coal  mine  workers,  and  boot  and  shoe  workers. 

Replies  to  letters  which  the  president  of  the  American 
Federation  of  Labor  sent  in  1905  to  trade  unions  of  foreign 
countries  for  the  purpose  of  urging  the  mutual  recognition 
of  cards  between  unions  of  kindred  crafts  and  callings 
showed  that  the  practice  of  admitting  members  of  foreign 
unions  without  payment  of  an  initiation  fee  was  more  com- 
mon in  Europe  than  in  America.  The  painters,  varnishers, 
plasterers,  and  whitewashers  of  Germany,  for  example, 
reported  that  agreements  providing  for  the  remission  of 
initiation  fees  existed  between  the  principal  organizations 
of  tliese  trades  in  Germany,  Denmark,  Austria-Hungary, 
Servia,  and  Switzerland,  but  that  the  Brotherhood  of 
Painters,  Decorators  and  Paperhangers  of  America  have 
refused  to  enter  into  such  an  agreement.  Similarly,  the 
Amalgamated  Operative  Lace  Makers  of  Nottingham,  Eng- 
land, reported  that  the  organized  lace  makers  of  England, 
France,  Scotland,  and  Spain  have  reached  an  agreement 
whereby  each  association  admits  members  bearing  cards 
from  the  others  without  requiring  an  initiation  fee.  The 
same  privilege  is  extended  on  reciprocal  terms  to  American 
lace  makers;  but  the  American  organization  has  not  accepted 
it,  and  imposes  a  heavy  initiation  fee  on  immigrant  lace 
makers. 

The  investigation  of  the  American  Federation  of  Labor 
showed  that  the  unions  both  at  home  and  abroad  were  fav- 
orable on  the  whole  to  the  mutual  recognition  of  travelling 
cards.  Certain  modifications  of  the  scheme  were  urged. 
The  suggestion  was  made  that  the  immigrant  workman  who 
was  admitted  to  the  union  of  his  newly  adopted  country 
without  paying  a  fee  must  have  belonged  to  the  union  of 
the  trade  in  his  former  country  for  longer  than  a  certain 
period.  Most  of  the  European  associations  insisted,  how- 
ever, that  the  required  minimum  period  of  membership  in 
the  former  union  be  as  short  as  possible,  certainly  not  more 


195]  AREA    OF    FEDEX-^       jiv  89 

than  one  year.  Unions  paying  sick,  death,  and  other  benefits 
were  also  reluctant  to  allow  journeymen  from  foreign  asso- 
ciations not  paying  such  benefits  to  become  eligible  to  receive 
them  until  they  had  belonged  for  at  least  a  certain  length 
of  time.'^" 

■An  eflFective  alliance  between  trade  unionists  of  Europe 
and  America  is  still  largely  a  dream  of  the  future;  yet  even 
as  correspondence  and  informal  cooperation  between  local 
societies  led  in  America  to  the  creation  of  national  and  con- 
tinental associations,  so  the  agreements  and  exchange  of 
courtesies  between  American  and  European  unions  may  pos- 
sibly lead  to  world  federation.  A  few  intercontinental 
unions  exist,  indeed,  at  the  present  time,  and  the  formation 
of  others  has  been  attempted  in  the  past.  The  oldest  ex- 
amples are  two  British  trade  unions,  the  Amalgamated 
Society  of  Carpenters  and  Joiners  and  the  Amalgamated 
Society  of  Engineers,  which  have  established  branch  socie- 
ties in  the  United  States,  Canada,  New  Zealand,  Australia, 
South  Africa,  and  other  parts  of  the  world  where  British 
workers  are  to  be  found  in  numbers.  Both  unions  have 
founded  branches  in  most  of  the  larger  cities  of  North 
America,  and  have  united  these  branches  into  American- 
Canadian  districts.  These  districts  have  councils  and  sec- 
retaries of  their  own,  and  enjoy  a  considerable  degree  of 
autonomy  even  on  such  important  questions  as  strikes.  Both 
are  affiliated  with  the  American  Federation  of  Labor. 

These  British  associations  have  attained  such  wide  terri- 
torial jurisdiction  because  of  the  desire  of  their  members 
on  emigrating  to  other  countries  to  remain  eligible  to  the 
sick,  death,  and  other  benefits  of  the  home  society.  The 
benefits  paid  by  American  unions,  as  compared  with  those 
of  English  unions  in  these  trades,  are  held  to  be  completely 
inadequate.  Aloreover,  in  order  to  be  entitled  to  them,  one 
must  have  belonged  to  the  American  union  for  a  certain 
length  of  time.  The  large  benefits  paid  by  these  English 
organizations  have  led  even  native  Americans  to  join  them. 

"  Proceedings  of  the  Twenty-sixth  Annual  Convention  of  the 
American  Federation  of  Labor,  1906. 


90  GOVERNMENT' ^  OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [196 

The  attempt  of  the  British  unions  to  maintain  branches 
in  America  has  caused  them  to  clash  with  certain  American 
organizations.  A  bitter  jurisdictional  dispute  has  existed 
for  years  between  the  Amalgamated  Society  of  Carpenters 
and  Joiners  and  the  United  Brotherhood  of  Carpenters  and 
Joiners  of  America.  The  Amalgamated  Society  of  Engi- 
neers, which  combines  several  trades  that  in  America  are 
organized  into  separate  associations,  has  had  to  wage  a 
controversy  simultaneously  with  several  American  unions, 
namely,  the  International  Association  of  Machinists,  the 
Patternmakers'  League  of  North  America,  and  the  Brother- 
hood of  Blacksmiths  and  Helpers. 

The  unions  native  to  American  soil  have  resented  greatly 
this  encroachment  on  their  territory  by  "alien  associations. 
Early  in  the  history  of  this  foreign  invasion  their  attitude 
was  well  expressed  by  a  certain  labor  publication  as  follows : 
"  It  is  certainly  not  claiming  too  much  to  assert  that  the 
men  acquainted  with  our  institutions,  the  peculiarities  and 
wants  of  our  own  people  are  better  able  to  direct  the  labor 
movement  and  control  the  various  labor  organizations  than 
Englishmen,  Scotchmen,  or  Irishmen,  residing  in  Great 
Britain  or  continental  Europe.  American  institutions  are 
bound  to  predominate  on  the  Western  Continent,  and  we 
think  American  workmen,  both  native  and  foreign  born,  are 
just  as  qualified  to  direct  their  own  afifairs  and  settle  their 
own  grievances  as  men  who  reside  three  or  four  thousand 
miles  from  the  field  of  operation.  We  welcome  the  good 
men  and  true  from  all  countries,  and  ask  their  aid  and 
advice,  but  we  claim  and  have  a  right  to  expect  that  those 
who  cast  their  lot  with  us,  and  gain  a  livelihood  in  our 
midst,  should  become  home  instead  of  foreign  missionaries. 
Let  us  reverse  the  case,  and  suppose  the  president  of  the 
Machinists  and  Blacksmiths'  Union  of  North  America 
should  appoint  deputies  for  the  several  counties  of  Great 
Britain,  and  organize  unions  which  acknowledge  fealty  alone 
to  the  Western  International.  What  a  hue  and  cry  of 
unwarrantable  impertinence  would  be  raised  from  one  end 
of  the  island  to  the  other,  and  justly  too.     Now,  what  is 


197]  AREA    OF    FEDEIL'\TION  9 1 

sauce  for  the  goose  is  sauce  for  the  gander.  If  it  would 
be  in  bad  taste  to  estabhsh  American  Unions  in  Great 
Britain,  is  it  not  equally  so  to  establish  British  Unions  in 
the  United  States?  Properly  guarded,  both  organizations 
would  become  helpmates  to  each  other  instead  of  being  as  at 
present  stumbling  blocks  in  each  other's  vvay."'^ 

Within  recent  years  various  schemes  have  been  outlined 
for  the  partial  amalgamation  of  the  American  districts  of 
the  British  societies^  with  the  unions  in  the  United  States. 
In  1902  the  executive  council  of  the  American  Federation 
of  Labor  decided  that  while  the  unions  of  blacksmiths,  pat- 
ternmakers, and  machinists  in  the  United  States  should  be 
accorded  full  jurisdiction  in  all  trade  matters  such  as  regula- 
tion of  wages  and  hours,  the  members  of  the  American- 
Canadian  district  of  the  Amalgamated  Society  of  Engineers 
should  pay  dues  to  the  British  association  and  hence  be 
entitled  to  receive  its  sick,  death,  and  other  benefits.  The 
Amalgamated  Society  of  Engineers  refused,  however,  to 
accept  this  decision. ^^  Again,  in  1905,  an, umpire  selected 
by  the  American  District  of  the  Amalgamated  Society  of 
Carpenters  and  Joiners  and  the  United  Brotherhood  of 
Carpenters  and  Joiners  of  North  America  proposed  the 
creation  of  joint  councils  in  all  cities  and  towns  where  the 
United  Brotherhood  and  the  Amalgamated  Society  have 
branches.  These  joint  councils  were  to  have  power  to  regu- 
late wages  and  hours,  to  maintain  business  agents,  and  to 
pay  strike  benefits.  The  American  Carpenters  believe  that 
the  complete  absorption  of  the  British  branches  of  the  trade 
by  their  association  is  the  only  satisfactory  solution,  and  they 
refuse  to  compromise."''* 

"  Quoted  from  the  Workman's  Advocate,  in  the  Machinists  and 
Blacksmiths'  Journal,  January,  1872,  p.  477. 

''Report  of  the  Conference  between  the  Sectional  Unions  and  the 
Amalgamated  Society  of  Engineers.  Cleveland  (n.  d.). 

'*  For  a  copy  of  proposed  "temporary  trade  or  working  agree- 
ment," see  The  Carpenter,  December,  1903,  p.  5.  For  later  modifi- 
cation of  temporary  agreement,  see  Proceedings  of  the  Thirteenth 
General  Convention  of  the  United  Brotherhood  of  Carpenters  and 
Joiners,  1904,  p.  220.  The  discussion  and  vote  on  the  umpire's  plan 
of  amalgamation  is  contained  in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Fourteenth 
Biennial  Convention  of  the  United  Brotherhood  of  Carpenters  and 
Joiners,  1906,  pp.  35-37- 


92  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TR.\DE    UNIONS         [198 

Attempts  have  been  made  in  the  past  by  several  American 
associations  to  confederate  with  European  unions,  though 
apparently  with  little  success.  When  the  call  for  the  first 
national  convention  of  window  glass  workers  was  issued  in 
1874,  the  establishment  of  the  proposed  national  union  was 
considered  to  be  a  preliminary  step  to  the  creation  of  a  wider 
confederation  embracing  similar  branches  of  skilled  labor  in 
Europe.*''*  In  1884,  at  the  high  tide  in  the  Knights  of 
Labor  movement,  a  former  official  of  the  Window  Glass 
Workers  was  sent  to  Europe  by  the  Window  Glass  Work- 
ers' National  Assembly  300,  Knights  of  Labor,  to  establish 
branches  of  the  Knights  of  Labor  among  the  glass  workers 
of  Europe.  The  proposed  federation  was  declared  at  the 
time  to  be  "  not  so  difficult  an  undertaking  as  would  at  first 
seem.  The  foundation  of  a  universal  union  had,"  it  was 
said,  "  been  laid  in  England,  France  and  Belgium.  The 
work  of  solidifying  all  into  one  organization  is  the  work  of 
the  future.  When  production,  stock,  consumption,  the 
number  of  men  idle  or  employed,  and  the  number  of  appren- 
tices learning  the  trade,  is  known  all  over  the  world,  and 
sent  to  a  common  headquarters,  then  the  perfect  union  shall 
have  been  attained.""^  Apparently,  however,  the  attempt 
of  the  Window  Glass  Workers  failed. 

The  International  Brotherhood  of  Boiler  Makers,  Iron 
Shipbuilders  and  Helpers  was  more  successful  in  maintain- 
ing for  a  time  an  alliance  with  the  British  union  of  the  trade. 
Intimate  relations  began  in  1882  with  the  negotiations  be- 
tween the  officers  of  the  two  associations  to  prevent  the 
importation  of  English  boiler  makers  into  New  York  City 
to  take  the  place  of  the  men  on  strike.  In  1885  the  English 
society  sent  representatives  to  the  convention  of  the  Amer- 
ican union,  and  the  two  associations  became  united.  In 
1887  the  Boiler  Makers  and  Iron  Shipbuilders  claimed  to  be 
the  only  association  federated  with  their  English  fellow- 
craftsmen.  All  traces  of  the  existence  of  such  an  alliance 
are  lost,  however,  after  a  few  years.     In  1893  the  United 

**  National  Labor  Tribune,  May  23,  1874,  p.  i. 
"Ibid.,  October  il,  1884,  p.  4. 


199]  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  93 

Brewery  Workmen  of  America  began  negotiations  with  the 
national  union  of  German  brewery  workmen  looking  to  the 
establishment  of  an  intercontinental  union.  From  these 
negotiations  apparently  nothing  resulted."^  Since  1894, 
fraternal  delegates  from  the  British  Trade  Union  Congress 
have  been  present  at  conventions  of  the  American  Federa- 
tion of  Labor,  and  delegates  are  sent  from  the  American 
Federation  to  the  British  Trade  Union  Congress.*' 

A  wide-reaching  though  very  loose  alliance  has  been 
maintained  by  the  coal  miners'  unions  of  the  various  coun- 
tries. An  International  Congress  at  which  the  miners'  asso- 
ciations of  England,  Scotland,  Wales,  Belgium,  France,  Ger- 
many, and  Austria-Hungary  have  been  represented  has  been 
held  annually  by  the  miners  of  Europe  since  about  1890.  In 
1904  the  United  Mine  Workers  of  America  were  invited  to 
send  delegates  to  the  congress,  and  with  their  admission 
over  two  million  miners  were  said  to  be  represented  by 
delegates  who  came  from  countries  producing  nineteen 
twentieths  of  all  the  coal  mined  in  the  world."*  The  results 
of  these  congresses  have  been  indirect.  A  wide  variety  of 
subjects  has  been  discussed,  including  such  questions  as  the 
prohibition  of  the  employment  of  women  in  the  mining 
industry,  legal  prohibition  of  the  employment  of  children 
under  fourteen  years,  inspection  of  mines,  nationalization 
of  mines,  old-age  pensions,  the  eight-hour  day,  and  minimum 
and  maximum  wage  scales.  The  congress  has  no  power  to 
compel  the  organizations  represented  to  obey  its  mandates, 
but  resolutions  adopted  by  unanimous  vote  are  considered 
morally  binding  and  exert  strong  influence,  to  say  the  least. 
over  the  miners'  unions  in  each  country.  The  maintenance 
by  the  miners  of  the  world  of  a  central  office  in  charge  of 
a  permanent  secretary  has  been  suggested  but  so  far  has  not 
been  adopted. 

One  efTect  of  the  congress  has  been  to  stimulate  the  work- 
ers in  backward  countries  to  raise  the  conditions  of  labor 

"  Brauer-Zeitung,  January  21,  1893. 

""American  Federationist,  Octolier,  1903,  pp.  1052-1053,  1128. 
••Report  of  the  President,  in  Minutes  of  the  Fifteenth  Annual 
Convention,  1904. 


94  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [200 

toward  the  standard  which  prevails  in  more  progressive 
countries.  "  The  greatest  possible  difference  exists,  for 
example,  between  the  w^ages  of  miners  in  various  parts  of 
Europe.  In  Great  Britain  the  wages  have  been  relatively 
high,  until  the  last  year  or  two,  comparing  not  unfavorably 
with  the  wages  of  American  miners.  In  France  and  Bel- 
gium, however,  wages  are  much  lower,  and  in  certain  parts 
of  Germany,  notably  in  the  eastern  or  Silesian  district,  and 
throughout  Austria,  the  rate  of  remuneration  is  so  low  that 
the  workingman  cannot  live  in  decency,  and  in  many  cases 
cannot  maintain  himself  in  physical  vigor."''^  The  delegates 
to  the  congress  from  the  less  progressive  countries  have  car- 
ried back  home  the  report  of  better  conditions  in  other  lands, 
and  in  consequence  have  stimulated  their  compatriots  to 
develop  their  unions  and  to  bring  wages  up  to  a  higher  level. 
The  congress  has  also  urged  the  unions  of  the  less  advanced 
nations  to  agitate  for  the  adoption  of  progressive  labor  legis- 
lation by  the  state.  Partly  as  a  result  of  its  efforts,  the  work 
of  women  inside  the  mines  has  been  prohibited  by  practi- 
cally all  the  countries  represented.  Many  women  in  Europe 
pick  slate  and  do  other  rough  work  outside  the  mines,  but 
almost  none  are  employed  inside. 

Perhaps  the  most  important  achievement  of  the  congress, 
certainly  the  one  of  greatest  interest  to  the  American  dele- 
gates, was  the  adoption  in  1906  of  the  uniform  transfer  card 
recognized  by  the  organized  miners  of  the  world.""'  The 
United  Mine  Workers  and  other  American  unions  which 
do  not  collect  an  initiation  fee  from  members  of  European 
unions  had  great  difficulty  in  determining  whether  the 
transfer  cards  presented  by  foreign  miners  were  genuine 
or  not.  The  cards  differed  greatly  in  form,  and  were 
printed  in  many  languages,  frequently  unintelligible  to  local 
union  secretaries.  Sometimes  non-union  miners  sought  ad- 
mittance to  the  local  unions  of  the  United  Mine  Workers  of 
America  upon  the  presentation  of  cards  issued  by  other 
than  miners'   unions  in  their  own  countries.     Sometimes 

°°  United  Mine  Workers'  Journal,  September,  1904;  July,  1906. 
•*  Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings,  1907. 


201 J  AREA    OF    FEDERATION  95 

passports  or  books  issued  by  fraternal  societies  were  offered. 
Much  time  and  trouble  was  consumed  in  verifying  cards  by 
correspondence  with  the  European  organizations.  Some- 
times members  of  bona  fide  miners'  unions  in  Europe  were 
refused  admittance  because  the  American  association  feared 
that  they  were  impostors.  Occasionally,  when  the  officers 
of  the  central  organization  found  the  card  to  be  authentic 
and  instructed  the  local  union  to  accept  it,  the  latter,  still 
suspicious,  refused  to  do  so,  and  complied  only  when  threat- 
ened with  revocation  of  its  charter.  The  result  was  friction 
within  the  organization.  The  foreign  miner  whose  card  was 
not  recognized  or  was  recognized  only  after  a  long  delay 
thought  that  he  had  been  discriminated  against  as  a  for- 
eigner, bore  a  grudge  against  the  American  organization, 
and  became  perhaps  strongly  anti-union  in  feeling.'''^  The 
inscription  on  the  transfer  card  adopted  by  the  Miners' 
Congress  is  printed  in  a  number  of  languages,  and  the  diffi- 
culty of  verification,  which  has  troubled  so  greatly  the 
American  unions  of  miners,  has  thus  been  obviated. 

Undoubtedly  the  world-wide  trade  union,  if  it  is  ever 
formed,  must  be  a  very  loose  confederation  at  first,  with 
advisory  rather  than  mandatory  powers.  But  the  early 
national  and  continental  unions  in  the  United  States  were 
likewise  loose  confederations  at  first,  and  as  the  national 
and  the  continental  unions  have  developed  their  functions 
and  in  many  cases  have  become  centralized,  so  also,  with 
the  growing  economic  interdependence  of  all  parts  of  the 
world,  highly  centralized  world  federations  may  some  day 
be  evolved. 

"  Report  of  the  President,  in  Minutes  of  the  Seventeenth  Annual 
Convention,  1906. 


PART  II 

THE   CENTRALIZATION    OF   CONTROL 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  DECLINE   OF  THE   SHOP   MEETING   AND   OF 
THE    DISTRICT    UNION 

A  crucial  problem  in  the  government  of  the  American 
trade  union  has  been  the  proper  division  of  powers  between 
the  international,  district,  local,  and  shop  organizations.  The 
movement  has  been  steadily  toward  the  centralization  of 
authority  in  the  larger  federal  bodies.  This  centralization 
has  been  accomplished,  however,  only  after  a  long  and  a 
bitter  struggle. 

First,  in  point  of  time,  was  the  struggle  for  supremacy 
between  the  shop  organization  and  the  local  union.  The 
shop  meeting  surrendered  its  control  over  collective  bargain- 
ing with  extreme  reluctance.  For  many  years  in  some 
trades  the  workers  in  each  establishment  bargained  with 
their  employer  concerning  their  own  wages,  hours,  and  other 
conditions  of  labor.  In  consequence  of  this  decentralized 
policy,  competing  factories  in  the  same  community  often 
had  widely  different  wage  scales  and  hours  of  work.  As 
late  as  the  period  immediately  following  the  Civil  War 
such  variations  existed  even  in  unions  which,  like  the  Iron 
Molders,  now  conduct  collective  bargaining  on  a  national 
basis. ^  The  desirability  of  uniform  conditions  of  employ- 
ment has  become  so  obvious,  however,  that  almost  every- 
where control  over  such  matters  has  been  absorbed  by  the 

^International  Journal  [Iron  Molders],  May,  1866,  p.  62. 

96 


203]  DECLINE    OF    THE    SHOP    MEETING  97 

local  or  federal  unions  of  the  trade.  There  are  a  few  excep- 
tions. The  Ladies'  Garment  Workers,  for  example,  who 
are  paid  by  the  piece,  permit  each  shop  committee  to  fix  the 
rate  of  wages  with  its  employer.  This  practice  is  necessary 
because  the  piece  rate  varies  between  factories  and  from 
day  to  day  in  each  factory,  according  to  the  constantly 
changing  styles  of  ladies'  garments.  The  Hatters  pursue  a 
similar  decentralized  policy.  Methods  of  production  are 
said  to  vary  widely  in  different  hat  factories.  At  the  desire 
of  the  manufacturers,  wages  arc  determined  by  agreement 
between  the  employer  and  employees  in  each  factory.-  In 
the  great  majority  of  trades,  however,  the  local  union  en- 
deavors to  secure  the  same  conditions  from  all  employers  in 
the  community.^ 

The  shop  has  also  surrendered  very  reluctantly  the  right 
to  declare  a  strike,  which  it  exercised  in  some  trades  before 
local  unions  existed.  Even  when  the  terms  of  the  labor 
contract  are  admittedly  fixed  by  the  local  unions,  the  mem- 
bers of  the  shop  have  not  infrequently  claimed  the  right  to 
strike  when  these  terms  are  violated  by  an  employer.  But 
shop  strikes  have  often  been  hasty  and  ill-advised.  They 
have  been  declared  with  no  proper  consideration  of  the 
prospects  of  success,  no  study  of  the  conditions  of  the 
industry,  of  the  number  of  men  out  of  employment,  or  of 
the  general  state  of  the  labor  market.  It  has  been  sufficient 
that  a  grievance  existed.  For  this  reason  shop  strikes  have 
usually  failed.  On  the  other  hand,  when  the  proposal  to 
strike  is  submitted  to  the  local  union,  a  large  part  of  those 
who  make  the  decision  are  not  directly  involved  in  the  dis- 
pute, and  so  are  not  blinded  by  a  sense  of  personal  injury. 

*  Constitution  and  By-Laws,  1907,  art.  v.  Minimum  rates,  both 
district  and  national,  confine  the  variations  between  factories  to  a 
narrow  range  in  any  particular  locality. 

'  Though  the  Glass  Bottle  Blowers  and  the  Potters  have  national 
scales  of  wages,  they  permit  a  shop  committee  to  fix  the  rate  per 
piece  for  any  new  article  not  covered  by  existing  agreements.  The 
piece  rate  for  the  new  article  must  be  submitted  for  approval  to  the 
local  union.  The  members  of  a  shop  are  sometimes  allowed  to 
arrange  with  their  employers  details  concerning  methods  of  work 
and  other  minor  matters  not  affecting  cost  of  production. 

7 


98  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [2O4 

Moreover,  v\?hen  benefits  are  paid  to  men  on  strike  by  local 
and  national  unions,  naturally  those  who  are  taxed  demand 
the  right  to  determine  how  the  money  shall  be  expended. 
Usually,  therefore,  shop  strikes  are  forbidden. 

There  are  a  few  unions,  notably  the  building  trades 
unions,  which  permit  the  members  working  on  a  particular 
building  to  strike  when  the  employer  violates  any  term  of 
his  agreement  with  the  union.  The  men  on  the  building 
must  be  vested  with  such  power,  declare  union  officials  in 
the  building  trades,  because  the  shifting  character  of  the 
work  makes  prompt  action  necessary.  By  the  time  the 
consent  of  the  local  union  can  be  obtained  the  building,  they 
say,  will  be  finished,  and  the  men  scattered  in  various  parts 
of  the  city.  At  the  same  time,  since  only  a  small  fraction 
of  the  trade  is  employed  on  a  single  building,  the  financial 
burden  of  paying  strike  benefits  is  light,  and  the  failure  of 
the  strike  is  not  a  fatal  blow  to  the  union.  Nevertheless, 
with  the  rise  of  large  contractors  and  with  the  formation 
of  employers'  associations  to  fight  or  bargain  with  the  union, 
each  strike  in  the  building  trades  is  tending  to  involve  an 
ever  increasing  number  of  men,  working  on  not  one  but 
many  buildings.  There  is  a  tendency  also  for  an  insignifi- 
cant struggle  begun  on  one  building  to  spread  until  the 
workers  on  many  buildings  in  the  community  are  involved. 
For  these  reasons  the  building  trades  unions  are  beginning 
to  make  some  efforts  to  control  shop  strikes. 

Though  distinctly  forbidden,  unauthorized  shop  strikes 
have  continued  to  occur.  As  late  as  the  convention  of  1880, 
the  president  of  the  Cigar  Makers'  International  Union  re- 
ported their  frequent  occurrence  to  the  general  convention, 
and  declared  that  the  local  unions  were  impotent  to  prevent 
them.  "  After  the  shop  struck,"  he  said,  "  the  union  calls  a 
special  meeting  for  the  purpose  of  sustaining  its  action. 
There  is  no  choice  under  these  circumstances,  the  men 
having  once  gone  out,  because,  in  fact,  the  union  fears  to 
act  otherwise."*     In  conformity  with  suggestions  of  the 

*  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  October,  1880,  p.  2. 


205]  DECLINE    OF    THE    SHOP    MEETING  99 

president  at  this  convention,  Local  Union  No.  144  of  Cigar 
Makers  in  New  York  City  passed  a  stringent  rule  designed 
to  prevent  the  unauthorized  shop  strike.'^  It  provided  that 
when  an  "  organized  shop  "  went  on  strike  without  the  sanc- 
tion of  the  local  union,  the  president  of  the  union  should 
request  the  men  involved  to  return  to  work.  If  they  refused, 
he  should  advertise  for  non-union  men  and  fill  their  places. 
To  insure  the  performance  of  this  disagreeable  task  by  the 
president,  the  law  further  provided  for  his  removal  from 
office  should  he  fail  to  inflict  such  punishment.  As  might 
have  been  predicted,  after  the  passage  of  this  rule  the  New 
York  local  unions  had  much  less  difficulty  with  rebellious 
shops.  Similar  rules  have  been  adopted  by  local  unions  in 
this  and  other  trades,  but  even  at  the  present  day  the  mem- 
bers of  a  shop  occasionally  declare  unauthorized  strikes. 

In  many  organizations  the  members  of  a  shop  may  en- 
deavor through  a  committee  to  adjust  disputes  with  employ- 
ers by  peaceful  means.  In  other  unions,  however,  they  may 
not  even  perform  this  function.  All  alleged  violations  of 
agreements  and  other  grievances  must  be  submitted  imme- 
diately to  special  or  standing  boards  of  conciliation  created 
by  the  local  unions,  which  take  up  the  matter  with  the 
employer. 

The  shop  is  now  primarily  a  convenient  administrative 
unit  for  the  transaction  of  a  limited  number  of  executive 
functions  especially  delegated  to  it  by  the  local  union.  Cer- 
tain officials,  elected  sometimes  by  the  shop,  sometimes  by 
the  local  union,  collect  dues,  affix  the  label  to  union-made 
goods,  and  perform  other  carefully  specified  duties. 

The  division  of  function  between  district  and  national 
unions  has  not  been  a  difficult  problem,  since  most  state  and 
district  unions  have  been  created  by  the  national  organiza- 
tions to  exercise  certain  very  limited,  specially  delegated 
powers.  Among  the  coal  mine  workers,  however,  state  and 
district  unions  existed  for  many  years  prior  to  the  formation 

'  By-Laws  of  Local  Union  No.  144  of  New  York  City,  adopted 
1883,  art.  X,  sec.  11,  in  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  August,  1883. 


100  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [206 

of  national  unions,  and  after  the  permanent  establishment 
of  a  national  union  in  the  year  1885  these  bodies  refused 
stubbornly  to  be  stripped  of  any  of  their  powers.  From  1885 
to  1898  the  national  union  of  coal  mine  workers  possessed 
no  real  function  and  hung  together  as  by  a  thread.  A  joint 
conference  board  on  which  were  represented  the  miners  and 
operators  of  Indiana,  Illinois,  Ohio,  Pennsylvania,  and 
West  Virginia  was  indeed  created  in  1885  to  equalize  wages 
and  other  conditions  of  employment  in  these  five  States,  but 
it  was  discontinued  in  1887.  The  officers  of  the  national 
association  attempted  to  equalize  wages  by  organizing 
unions  and  urging  the  miners  to  strike  for  higher  wages  in 
districts  where  the  scale  was  exceptionally  low.  Usually 
the  national  officers  were  also  present  at  the  state  or  district 
conference  between  employers  and  employees,  and  exercised 
a  general  oversight  over  such  agreements,  but  the  influence 
which  they  exerted  was  very  slight.  In  1890  a  strike  fund 
was  created.  The  effort  to  maintain  it  was  abandoned  after 
a  year  or  two,  and  strikes  were  again  supported  by  the  sev- 
eral state  associations. 

The  national  organization  was  held  in  such  little  esteem 
by  the  miners  in  the  Pittsburg  district  that  in  1891  they  de- 
bated hotly  the  advisability  of  withdrawing  from  it.  The  vote 
on  the  question  at  the  district  convention  resulted  in  a  tie, 
and  was  finally  referred  to  the  local  lodges.  Secession  was 
in  fact  only  narrowly  prevented.  During  the  next  two  or 
more  years  the  dissolution  of  the  central  union  was  fre- 
quently urged  by  writers  in  the  official  journal.  "The 
national  association,"  they  declared,  "  is  useless.  Better 
conditions,  whenever  secured,  have  resulted  from  the  activ- 
ity, not  of  the  national,  but  of  the  state  and  district  unions." 
With  little  excuse  for  its  existence,  the  confederation  did 
manage  to  hold  together  even  through  the  troublous  times 
following  the  panic  of  1893. 

Since  1898  the  powers  of  the  national  union  have  grown 
considerably.  The  interstate  conferences  were  renewed  in 
that  year,  and  with  greater  regulation  of  the  terms  of  the 
labor  contract  there  has  developed  greater  control  over  the 


207]  DECLINE    OF    THE    SHOP    MEETING  lOI 

declaration  and  conduct  of  strikes.  The  interstate  agree- 
ment applies,  however,  only  to  the  States  of  Illinois,  Indiana, 
Ohio,  and  to  western  Pennsylvania.  To  be  sure,  the  scale 
fixed  for  miners  in  these  States  has  been  used  as  a  basis  for 
wages  paid  in  outlying  coal  fields;"  moreover,  since  1904  an 
interstate  agreement  has  been  maintained  by  the  miners  and 
operators  of  Missouri,  Kansas,  Arkansas,  Indian  Territory, 
and  Texas,'^  but  there  is  no  prospect  that  the  wish  of  leaders 
among  the  miners  for  a  national  joint  conference  of  coal 
operators  and  their  employees  will  be  fulfilled  in  the  near 
future.  The  United  Mine  Workers  of  America  is,  there- 
fore, still  a  loose  confederation.  As  yet,  much  of  the  col- 
lective bargaining  is  conducted  by  the  district  unions,  and 
many  of  them  maintain  strike  funds  of  equal  or  larger 
amount  than  that  of  the  national  association. 

The  importance  of  the  district  union  among  the  Miners  is, 
however,  exceptional.  In  other  trades  it  exercises  its  pow- 
ers, which  are  chiefly  administrative  or  judicial,  at  the 
discretion  of  the  national  union.  Its  acts  and  decisions  are 
usually  reviewable  and  reversible  by  the  larger  federation. 
In  only  one  out  of  five  international  unions  which  vest  the 
district  organization  with  judicial  power  to  consider  appeals 
by  members  from  decisions  of  the  local  societies  is  the  ver- 
dict of  the  district  association  final.^  In  only  two  out  of  the 
forty-nine  unions  which  vest  the  district  unions  with  some 
control  over  the  declaration  and  conduct  of  strikes  may  the 
district  organization  call  a  strike  supported  from  the  national 
treasury  without  the  sanction  of  the  national  association.* 
If  the  district  union  opposes  the  declaration  of  a  strike  de- 
sired by  a  local  society,  its  action  is  usually  final,  though 

'  Proceedings  of  Annual  Joint  Conference  of  Coal  Miners  and 
Operators  of  Illinois,  Indiana,  Ohio  and  Pennsylvania,  1808-1906. 

^Minutes  of  the  Fifteenth  Annual  Convention  of  the  United  Mine 
Workers  of  America,  1904,  p.  27. 

'  The  Teamsters. 

'The  Amalgamated  Iron,  Steel  and  Tin  Workers  of  America  and 
the  International  Tin  Plate  Workers'  Protective  Association  of 
America.  One  of  the  four  members  of  the  district  board,  which  in 
these  two  unions  has  authority  to  declare  strikes,  is,  however,  a 
national  official,  namely,  a  national  vice-president,  who  by  reason  of 
that  office  serves  as  executive  head  of  the  district. 


102  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS        [208 

the  Boot  and  Shoe  Workers  and  a  few  other  unions  provide 
that  the  local  society  whose  application  has  been  refused 
may  appeal  to  the  international  executive  board. 

The  creation  of  district  unions,  while  not  reducing  the 
power  of  the  national  associations,  does  greatly  limit  the 
powers  of  the  local  societies.  The  district  organizations 
have  stripped  the  local  unions  of  nearly  all  control  over  the 
conditions  of  employment  in  those  trades  where  national 
collective  bargaining  is  impracticable.  In  forty-nine  out  of 
eighty-six  unions  whose  rules  require  the  formation  of  dis- 
trict unions  the  local  union  may  not  even  ask  the  national 
union  to  give  financial  support  to  its  strike  without  securing 
the  consent  of  the  joint  executive  board  or  of  a  joint  mass- 
meeting  of  all  local  unions  in  the  district.  Moreover,  the 
district  unions,  which  are  frequently  charged  with  the  en- 
forcement of  national  rules,  have  made  the  control  over  local 
unions  by  the  national  federations  much  more  eflfective. 

The  growth  in  the  power  of  the  district  unions  has  not 
been  accepted  by  the  local  societies  without  a  protest.  At 
times,  they  have  refused  to  send  representatives  to  the  joint 
council  of  the  district  or  have  refused  to  obey  its  enactments. 
When  such  rebellion  occurs,  the  national  union  is  usually 
appealed  to,  and  it  enforces  obedience  to  the  mandates  of 
its  subordinate  federation  by  threat  of  fine  or  expulsion. 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE   ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    THE    NATIONAL 

UNION 

The  early  national  unions  were  decentralized.  Some  of 
them  had  not  even  the  unity  of  confederations,  but  were 
rather  conferences  of  independent  bodies.  So  slight,  indeed, 
was  the  tie  that  the  national  unions  were  conceived  to  be 
composed  not  of  allied  local  societies,  but  of  the  officers  and 
delegates  to  the  representative  assembly.  This  conception 
is  reflected  in  the  following  section  from  the  first  constitu- 
tion of  the  Printers  :^  "  The  members  of  the  National  Union 
shall  be  composed  of  its  elective  officers  and  the  represen- 
tatives from  subordinate  unions  acting  under  legal  unre- 
claimed warrants  granted  by  the  National  Union."  An 
almost  identical  clause  is  found  in  the  first  national  constitu- 
tions of  the  Iron  Molders-  and  of  the  Bricklayers,^  and  the 
same  idea  is  expressed  in  the  preamble  to  the  rules  of  the 
early  Machinists'  and  Blacksmiths'  Union.*  When  these 
national  unions  became  more  firmly  established  and  began 
to  exercise  important  functions,  this  conception  was  rapidly 
lost. 

The  national  and  international  unions  exercise  specially 
delegated  powers.  All  powers  not  so  specially  delegated  are 
reserved  to  the  local  unions.  In  all  unions  the  number  of 
functions  exercised  by  the  central  federation  has  increased 
with  greater  or  less  rapidity,  but  some  associations  are  still 
greatly  decentralized.  Others  have  absorbed  nearly  all  pow- 
ers until  the  subordinate  unions  exist  primarily  to  admin- 
ister the  functions  of  the  national  union  according  to  de- 
tailed rules  fixed  by  that  body. 

*  Constitution,  1851. 

*  Constitution,  1859,  in  Proceedings,  1859. 
'Constitution,  1867. 

*  Machinists  and  Blacksmiths'  Journal,  April,  1872,  p.  593. 

103 


I04  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [2IO 

The  national  unions  have  first  encroached  on  the  powers 
of  the  local  societies  by  adopting  rules  governing  the  admis- 
sion of  members.  Even  before  national  unions  existed, 
journeymen  bearing  "travelling  cards"  indicating  member- 
ship in  some  local  society  of  the  trade  were  admitted  by 
other  societies  without  payment  of  an  initiation  fee.  All 
national  unions  have  continued  this  policy,  and  their  earliest 
rules  were  those  regulating  the  issuance,  presentation,  and 
acceptance  of  travelling  cards.  The  regulations  governing 
the  card  system  were  declared  by  the  president  of  the  Inter- 
national Typographical  Union  in  1867  to  be  the  only  legis- 
lation which  "had  the  tendency  to  bind  together  union 
printers  with  the  bonds  of  fraternal  communion  and 
friendly  alliance."  In  fact,  from  1852  to  1884  such  regula- 
tion was  practically  the  sole  function  of  the  federal  organi- 
zation of  the  Printers.^ 

The  willingness  to  accept  without  question  a  workman 
bearing  a  card  from  another  local  union  logically  involves 
the  acceptance  of  uniform  regulations  regarding  qualifica- 
tions for  membership.  When  a  difference  of  opinion  exists 
between  the  local  unions  concerning  the  proper  qualifications 
for  membership,  regulation  by  the  international  association 
becomes  necessary.  When,  for  example,  the  molding  ma- 
chine was  introduced  into  cigar  factories,  some  local  unions 
admitted  to  membership  the  workers  on  these  machines. 
Others  refused  to  do  so.  Therefore,  regulation  by  the 
national  union  became  essential,  and  about  1876,  after  sev- 
eral years  of  bitter  controversy,  a  rule  was  introduced  to  the 
efifect  that  no  local  union  should  reject  an  applicant  to  mem- 
bership on  account  of  the  condition  of  working.  The  rules 
governing  qualifications  for  membership  in  the  Cigar 
Makers'  Union  were  declared  in  1876,  twelve  years  after  the 
founding  of  the  federal  society,  to  be  "  the  only  law  in  the 
international  constitution  which  warrants  equity  of  princi- 
ples within  the  different  unions."® 

The  maintenance  of  a  travelling  card  has  also  rendered 

» G.  E.  Bamett,  The  Printers,  p.  35. 

'Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  March,  1876. 


21  l]       ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION  IO5 

expedient  the  national  regulation  of  the  amount  of  the  initia- 
tion fee  required  by  the  local  unions.  Otherwise,  a  journey- 
man wishing  to  join  a  society  having  a  higher  fee  than  others 
may  evade  paying  the  difference  by  going  to  a  nearby  society 
with  a  lower  entrance  fee,  drawing  a  travelling  card,  and 
then  becoming  a  member  of  the  union  with  the  high  fee, 
simply  by  depositing  his  card. 

Rules  governing  the  admission  of  members  have  been 
adopted  by  all  national  unions,  and  in  some  of  them  these 
rules  constitute  the  sole  or  chief  legislation  limiting  the 
power  of  the  local  unions.  Regulations  concerning  the  use 
of  the  travelling  card  are  to  be  found  in  the  constitutions  of 
all  national  organizations,  and  the  qualifications  for  mem- 
bership are  carefully  defined  whenever  there  is  dispute  as 
to  the  kind  of  workmen  that  shall  be  admitted.  The  local 
societies  have  objected  with  much  earnestness,  however,  to 
the  establishment  of  a  uniform  initiation  fee.  The  strong 
local  union  which  wishes  to  deter  non-unionists  from  joining 
the  society  objects  to  a  uniform  fee  of  lower  amount  than  the 
one  which  it  charges.  The  weak  local  union  which  wishes 
to  secure  new  members  objects  seriously  to  the  establish- 
ment of  a  higher  fee.  About  three  fourths  of  the  one  hun- 
dred and  thirty  national  and  international  associations  studied 
have,  indeed,  attempted  to  regulate  the  amount  of  the  initia- 
tion fee,  but  only  thirty-six,  or  about  twenty-eight  per 
cent,  have  adopted  a  uniform  fee  for  all  branches.  Forty- 
nine  have  established  a  minimum,  ranging  from  one  dollar 
to  fifty  dollars.  Ten  have  set  a  maximum  and  a  minimum 
limit.  Though  local  societies  have  objected  strenuously  to 
any  interference  with  their  internal  affairs,  their  government 
and  their  finances  have  been  reorganized  frequently  by  the 
national  unions.  Federal  organizations  have  thus  interfered 
in  order  to  secure  the  good  administration  not  only  of  na- 
tional activities  but,  at  a  later  stage,  of  purely  local  activities 
as  well. 

The  cooperation  of  the  local  unions  is  required  to  admin- 
ister most  national    functions.     Since  the  general  oflficers 


I06  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [212 

at  headquarters  cannot  very  conveniently  act  at  the  trial  of  a 
member  living  in  some  community  many  miles  away,  mem- 
bers must  be  tried  for  violation  of  national  rules  by  local 
tribunals.  The  early  national  unions  needed  the  cooperation 
of  local  societies  to  maintain  their  first  activity,  namely,  the 
travelling  card,  which  admitted  members  of  one  constituent 
society  to  any  other  without  payment  of  an  initiation  fee. 
They  needed  such  cooperation  even  more  when  they  began 
to  pay  national  sick,  out-of-work,  strike,  and  other  benefits. 
To  be  sure,  the  death  benefit,  consisting  of  a  single  lump 
payment,  is  awarded  usually  by  some  national  officer  who 
bases  his  decision  on  the  physician's  certificate,  affidavits  as 
to  name,  age,  date  of  birth,  date  of  admission  to  union,  and 
other  data  submitted  by  the  subordinate  societies.  But  sick 
and  out-of-work  benefits  and  the  system  of  advancing  loans 
to  members  who  wish  to  travel  in  search  of  work  must  be 
administered  by  the  local  unions.  The  reason  is  that  the 
international  officers  cannot  make  the  many  small,  consecu- 
tive payments  required  for  the  maintenance  of  these  activ- 
ities without  grave  inconvenience,  nor  can  they  detect  fraud 
on  the  part  of  the  beneficiaries.  Even  local  officials  who  are 
personally  acquainted  with  the  applicants,  who  have  com- 
plete opportunity  for  investigation  and  every  desire  to  ad- 
minister honestly  and  efficiently,  can  detect  them  only  with 
great  difficulty. 

lAgain,  to  insure  the  prompt  payment  of  sick  or  out-of- 
work  benefits  by  the  local  officers,  the  national  union  desires 
to  keep  funds  constantly  on  deposit  in  the  treasury  of  the 
constituent  societies.  Most  federal  organizations  prefer 
to  endure  the  delay  rather  than  entrust  funds  to  the  local 
unions ;  but  the  Elastic  Goring  Weavers'  Amalgamated  As- 
sociation, which  pays  sick  and  out-of-work  benefits,  the 
Cigar  Makers'  International  Union,  which  makes  loans  to 
travelling  members  and  pays  sick  and  out-of-work  benefits, 
and  the  Piano,  Organ  and  Musical  Instrument  Workers' 
International  Union,  which,  though  a  close  imitator  of  the 
cigar  makers'  organization,  pays  only  sick  benefits,  have  felt 


213]       ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION  10/ 

compelled  to  entrust  the  local  societies  with  all  national 
funds.  Moreover,  the  Iron  IMolders'  Union,  the  only  re- 
maining association  paying  an  unemployment  benefit,  en- 
trusts the  local  unions  with  all  funds  set  apart  for  the  pay- 
ment of  such  out-of-work  benefits. 

The  local  union's  method  of  conducting  national  activities 
or  of  administering  justice  must  be  carefully  regulated, 
otherwise  it  is  apt  to  be  lax  and  inefficient.  The  judicial 
decisions  of  the  subordinate  societies  are  often  arbitrary 
and  unfair.  Accused  members  are  sometimes  not  given  full 
opportunity  for  defense,  and  the  penalties  inflicted  are  often 
disproportionate  to  the  misdemeanor.  Certain  violations 
of  the  rules,  such  as  the  failure  to  pay  dues  or  the  presenta- 
tion of  fraudulent  claims,  are  condoned.  Other  violations, 
such  as  the  acceptance  of  employment  in  "  scab "  or  non- 
union shops,  are  summarily  punished  by  expulsion  or  by 
fines  so  heavy  that  the  delinquent  is  not  able  to  pay  them. 
The  efforts  of  early  national  unions  such  as  the  Iron  Hold- 
ers'' or  the  Cigar  Makers^  to  loan  money  to  travelling  mem- 
bers or  to  pay  sick  or  out-of-work  benefits  failed  because 
they  left  the  administration  largely  to  the  discretion  of  the 
local  unions.  Subsequent  attempts  of  the  federal  associa- 
tions of  iron  molders  and  cigar  makers  were  successful  be- 
cause they  had  gained  much  greater  control  over  the  sub- 
ordinate societies,  and  could  prescribe  in  minute  detail  who 
should  administer  and  how  they  should  administer  the  inter- 
national activities.  When  necessary,  these  associations  have 
created  local  officers  to  perform  such  services,  and  have  also 
provided  for  travelling  international  officials  who  visit  the 
subordinate  societies  and  enforce  efficient  administration. 
Indeed,  the  successful  maintenance  of  sick  and  out-of-work 
benefits  and  of  the  system  of  loans  to  travelling  members  re- 
quires such  close  supervision  over  local  administration  that 

*  Early  in  the  history  of  the  Iron  Molders'  Union  a  system  of 
loans  to  travelHng  members  was  abolished  after  a  short  trial  (Con- 
stitution, in  Proceedings,  i860;  Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceed- 
ings, 1866). 

*  For  a  similar  attempt  by  the  Cigar  Makers,  see  Cigar  Makers' 
Official  Journal,  August,  1887. 


I08  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [214 

only  a  few  strongly  centralized  federal  associations  attempt 
to  maintain  these  activities. 

The  next  stage — regulation  to  promote  the  efficient  admin- 
istration of  purely  local  functions — followed  naturally. 
Very  early  in  the  history  of  national  unions,  members  were 
permitted  to  appeal  from  decisions  of  the  subordinate  unions 
in  cases  involving  not  only  national  but  also  local  rules. 
One  hundred  and  four  of  the  one  hundred  and  thirty  na- 
tional unions  pursue  this  policy  at  the  present  time.  Sixty- 
nine  of  the  one  hundred  and  thirty  unions  prescribe  the 
method  of  procedure  at  trials  of  members  in  the  local  unions, 
and  this  procedure  must  be  followed  in  cases  involving 
local  as  well  as  national  rules.  One  small  group  of  four 
associations  prevents  excessive  fines  by  fixing  the  maximum 
fine  which  the  local  unions  can  impose,®  and  six  others  re- 
quire the  ratification  of  all  fines  over  a  certain  amount  by  the 
central  authorities.^^ 

About  sixty  of  the  one  hundred  and  thirty  organizations 
studied  regulate  local  receipts  and  expenditures.  Unionists 
are  reluctant  to  pay  high  dues,  and  in  order  to  force  the  sub- 
ordinate societies  to  collect  sufficient  revenue  to  perform 
their  functions  adequately,  all  of  the  above  sixty  organiza- 
tions regulate  the  amount  of  dues.  Forty-one,  or  about 
two  thirds,  simply  fix  the  minimum  amount  of  the  dues.^^ 
The  remaining  nineteen  international  associations  fix  uni- 
form dues,  and  nine  of  these  also  fix  uniform  initiation  fees. 
Some  of  these  nineteen  international  unions  attempt  to 
determine  also  how  the  local  unions  shall  spend  the  money 
which  they  collect.  The  Cigar  Makers  and  the  Piano, 
Organ  and  Musical  Instrument  Workers  thus  limit  local  ex- 
penditures to  certain  carefully  enumerated  administrative 
purposes, — postage  and  supplies,  rent  of  meeting-room,  offi- 

*  Brewery  Workers,  $25,  Granite  Cutters,  $50,  Marine  Engineers, 
$25,  Stationary  Engineers,  $2. 

"  Cigar  Makers,  $10,  Piano,  Organ  and  Musical  Instrument  Work- 
ers. $50,  Plumbers,  Gas  Fitters,  Steam  Fitters,  and  Steam  Fitters' 
Helpers,  $25,  Shingle  Weavers,  $10,  Steam,  Hot  Water  and  Power 
Pipe  Fitters  and  Helpers,  $25,  Steel  Plate  Transferrers,  $25. 
One  association  fixes  the  maximum  amount. 


215]       ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION  IO9 

cers'  salaries,  and  so  on.  The  Uoot  and  Shoe  Workers  limit 
them  to  what  is  rather  vaguely  termed  "  running  expenses." 
Seven  associations  regulate  the  purposes  for  which  the  local 
unions  may  levy  assessments.  Another,  composed  of  steam- 
shovel  and  dredgemen,  requires  that  all  local  assessments 
must  be  approved  by  the  international  executive  board. 
Two  others,  the  international  unions  of  cigar  makers  and  of 
piano  and  organ  workers,  forbid  the  subordinate  unions  to 
levy  assessments  for  conflicts  with  employers  not  sanctioned 
by  the  federal  associations.  This  rule  is  a  most  effective 
measure  in  centralizing  control  over  strikes. 

Forty-nine  of  the  one  hundred  and  thirty  international 
unions  provide  a  form  of  by-laws  for  subordinate  societies, 
and  a  number  of  others  enumerate  the  list  of  officers  or 
attempt  some  other  limited  form  of  governmental  regulation. 
These  by-laws  are,  however,  not  always  mandatory,  but  are 
rather  for  the  guidance  of  the  local  unions,  particularly  the 
new  ones,  whose  members  usually  have  very  crude  ideas  con- 
cerning proper  methods  of  government.  Very  commonly, 
indeed,  they  are  closely  copied  by  the  subordinate  societies, 
though  sometimes  with  the  consent  of  the  central  authorities 
a  local  union  adopts  a  wholly  different  set  of  rules. 

A  bitter  and  protracted  struggle  between  the  national  and 
local  unions  has  occurred  over  the  control  of  strikes.  In  all 
trades  the  local  union  has  slowly  but  surely  lost  ground, 
though  even  today  in  only  a  few  organizations  is  the  strike 
policy  dictated  absolutely  by  the  federal  association. 

The  need  of  stricter  control  over  local  strikes  was  dem- 
onstrated very  early  in  the  history  of  national  trade  union- 
ism. At  meetings  of  local  unions  workmen  have  not  so 
often  rushed  into  a  struggle  without  taking  thought  as  they 
have  done  at  shop  meetings.  They  have  stopped  to  dis- 
cuss the  matter.  Nevertheless,  as  in  the  case  of  tlie  shop 
meeting,  the  appeal  of  the  cause  rather  than  the  prospect 
of  success  has  been  their  chief  consideration.  The  meetings 
called  to  decide  whether  or  not  to  declare  a  strike  are  often 
influenced   by   emotionalism,   enthusiasm,   and   excitement. 


no  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         \_2l6 

Fiery  orators  declaim  about  the  wrongs  of  labor,  and  declare 
that  the  threatened  reduction  in  wages  must  be  resisted 
since  the  union  can  never  retreat,  or  that  the  principle  of  the 
closed  shop  is  the  backbone  of  trade  unionism  and  must 
be  upheld  at  any  sacrifice.  Questions  of  expediency,  such 
as  the  amount  of  money  in  the  treasury,  the  prosperity  of 
the  industry,  or  the  number  unemployed,  have  been  too  fre- 
quently overlooked. 

When  the  international  unions  exercised  little  or  no  con- 
trol over  strikes,  the  local  unions  almost  invariably  entered 
blindly  into  utterly  hopeless  conflicts  against  reductions  in 
wages  during  industrial  depressions.  The  experience  of 
the  Mine  Workers  during  the  depression  following  the  panic 
of  1873  affords  an  illustration.  The  National  Miners'  Asso- 
ciation, established  in  1873,  maintained  a  strike  fund  but 
showed  little  discrimination  in  awarding  strike  benefits.  The 
local  union  nearly  always  rushed  into  a  strike,  and  then 
dispatched  its  leaders  to  the  headquarters  of  the  federation 
for  financial  aid.  Declaring  that  they  were  fighting  the  bat- 
tles of  the  miners  of  the  United  States,  they  would  pray  the 
national  union  to  save  them  from  the  grasping  and  tyrannical 
companies.  If  there  remained  any  money  in  the  national 
treasury,  such  a  request  was  usually  granted. ^^  The  strikes 
of  the  miners  at  Johnstown,  Pennsylvania,  and  in  the  Hocking 
Valley  during  1874,  those  in  the  anthracite  coal  regions  of 
the  Shenango  Valley  of  Pennsylvania,  in  the  Mahoning 
Valley  and  the  Tuscarawas  Valley  of  Ohio,  and  in  the  min- 
ing district  of  Brazil,  Indiana,  in  1875  were  all  fought  with 
vigor.  But  they  failed.  With  hundreds  of  miners  in  the 
same  and  adjoining  fields  out  of  work  and  eager  to  fill  the 
places  of  the  strikers,  such  struggles  had  to  fail."  Within 
eighteen  months  the  national  treasury  had  been  exhausted, 
and  so  completely  had  the  resources  of  the  local  unions  been 
drained  that  further  requests  for  assessments  and  voluntary 
contributions  elicited  no  response.     Coal  miners  in  all  parts 

"  National  Labor  Tribune,  November  7,  1874 ;  July  10,  1880,  p.  4. 
"Iron  Molders'  Journal,  February  10,  1878. 


2 1 7]       ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION  I  I  I 

of  the  country  were  forced  to  sever  their  connection  with 
the  union,  and  the  national  organization,  which  had  been 
established  so  auspiciously  a  few  years  before,  went  com- 
pletely to  pieces. 

Similar  conditions  existed  in  the  Cigar  Makers'  Interna- 
tional Union  at  this  time.  By  a  rule  enacted  prior  to  the 
panic  of  1873  the  international  executive  board  had  no  au- 
thority to  refuse  financial  aid  to  any  local  union  that  wantetl 
to  resist  either  a  reduction  in  wages  or  the  imposition  of  con- 
ditions contrary  to  the  rules  of  the  association.  Only  in  case 
the  local  union  wished  to  strike  for  an  increase  of  wages  did 
the  board  have  authority  to  withhold  funds.  When  the  in- 
dustrial depression  came,  the  executive  board,  helplessly 
tied  by  these  restrictions,  had  no  power  to  prevent  the  mem- 
bers from  plunging  recklessly  into  strikes,  though  they  knew 
such  a  course  to  be  suicidal.^*  The  Cigar  Makers'  Interna- 
tional Union  was  not  destroyed,  but  it  lost  sixty-seven  local 
unions  and  nearly  three  thousand  members  in  three  years. 
It  emerged  from  the  depression  weak,  scarcely  able  to  hold 
together,  with  only  seventeen  local  unions  and  a  membership 
of  about  one  thousand.  The  one  organization  with  a  some- 
what centralized  control  of  strikes — the  Iron  Molders'  Union 
— alone  emerged,  not,  indeed,  wholly  scathless,  yet  in  fairly 
prosperous  condition  and  able  to  resume  a  belligerent  poHcy 
immediately  with  the  beginning  of  better  times.  The  Iron 
Holders  had  already  learned  their  lesson  during  the  panic 
following  the  beginning  of  the  Civil  War. 

Even  if  the  local  unions  do  consider  very  carefully  the 
prospect  of  success,  they  are  not  in  a  position  to  determine 
how  far  the  state  of  the  industry  warrants  the  declaration 
of  a  strike,  since  conditions  of  which  they  are  ignorant  in 
distant  parts  of  their  own  country  or  in  other  countries  may 
render  their  strike  a  total  failure.  For  example,  the  large 
strikes  of  the  Stone  Masons  and  the  Carpenters  and  Joiners 
in  England  during  1877  failed  because  of  neglect  to  take 
into  consideration  conditions  in  other  parts  of  the  world. 


"Report  of  the  President,  1875.     See  also  Cigar  Makers'  Official 
Journal.  November  10,  1880,  p.  2. 


112  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [2 1 8 

The  union  of  each  trade  embraced  nearly  the  whole  of  the 
craft,  and  had  accumulated  a  very  large  strike  fund;  but 
both  strikes  failed  because  the  depression  on  the  Continent 
and  in  America  had  thrown  such  a  large  number  of  men  out 
of  employment  that  the  English  contractors  were  able  to 
import  workmen  from  foreign  countries  to  take  the  place  of 
the  strikers.^^  On  the  other  hand,  the  national  officers 
usually  receive  monthly  reports  concerning  the  state  of  the 
trade  from  all  parts  of  the  United  States  and  even  from 
other  countries.  With  this  broader  outlook,  they  are  able  to 
formulate  an  effective  strike  policy.  In  the  cigar  industry, 
for  example,  the  union  has  been  less  successful  in  its  struggles 
with  employers  during  the  dull  season  of  the  trade  from 
November  i  to  April  i.  Since  1882,  with  stricter  control 
over  such  conflicts  by  the  international  union,  all  strikes  for 
an  increase  in  wages  have  been  refused  financial  support 
during  these  months  of  the  year. 

The  degree  of  control  over  strikes  exercised  by  the  na- 
tional organizations  varies  greatly.  One  group  of  some  sev- 
enteen national  unions,  most  of  them  weak  and  newly  or- 
ganized, exercises  no  control  whatever.^^  They  offer  no 
financial  aid  to  workers  on  strike,  and  do  not  interfere  with 
the  freedom  of  action  of  the  local  unions.  One  hundred  and 
thirteen  unions  make  some  attempt  to  regulate  strikes,  but 
eighty-one  of  these  maintain  control  only  over  strikes  sup- 
ported by  the  funds  of  the  national  union.  These  organiza- 
tions maintain  the  right  to  determine  when  strikes  shall  be 
supfKDrted.  They  require  that  local  societies  to  whom  such 
aid  is  granted  must  conform  to  certain  regulations  designed 

"  Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings  of  the  Cigar  Makers, 
1885. 

"  These  are  the  following  unions :  Barbers,  Blast  Furnace  Work- 
ers and  Smelters,  Commercial  Telegraphers,  Composition  Roofers, 
Damp  and  Waterproof  Workers,  Electrical  Workers,  Hod  Carriers 
and  Building  Laborers,  Letter  Carriers,  Marine  Engineers,  Print 
Cutters,  Railway  Clerks,  Shipwrights,  Joiners,  Caulkers,  Boat  Build- 
ers and  Ship  Cabinet  Makers,  Slate  and  Tile  Roofers,  Stationary 
Engineers,  Steel  Plate  Transferrers,  Wall  Paper  Machine  Printers 
and  Color  Mixers,  Window  Glass  Cutters  and  Flatteners,  and  Win- 
dow Glass  Workers. 


219]       ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION  II3 

to  protect  the  conservative  majority  from  being  overruled  by 
the  radical  minority  on  the  question  of  declaring  strikes, 
designed  also  to  lead,  if  possible,  to  the  peaceful  adjustment 
of  disputes  with  employers,  and  otherwise  to  prevent  unnec- 
essary or  inexpedient  strikes.  In  all  of  these  eighty-one  or- 
ganizations the  local  unions  may  strike  when  and  how  they 
please,  provided  all  the  expenses  of  the  struggle  are  paid 
from  the  local  treasury. 

When  the  national  union  exercises  control  only  over 
strikes  supported  from  the  central  treasury,  the  effectiveness 
of  this  control  depends  on  the  strength  of  the  local  union's 
desire  for  financial  aid.  The  strength  of  the  local  union's 
desire  is  determined  in  turn  by  the  adequacy  of  the  aid 
given  by  the  international  association  and  by  the  ability  of 
the  local  union  to  conduct  its  conflicts  with  employers  with- 
out such  assistance. 

During  the  early  years  of  many  of  the  older  associations 
their  contributions  for  the  support  of  strikes  were  wholly 
inadequate.  For  example,  the  federal  associations  of  cigar 
makers  and  iron  molders  at  first  merely  solicited  voluntary 
donations  from  the  constituent  societies.  Later,  financial 
assistance  was  promised  for  all  strikes  sanctioned  by  the 
national  authorities.^^  No  benefits  of  definite  amount  were 
guaranteed,  however,  nor  was  any  reserve  fund  created  for 
their  payment.  Special  assessments  were  levied  whenever 
money  was  needed,  but  the  amount  of  these  assessments 
was  small.  Moreover,  the  local  unions,  bound  by  very 
slender  ties  to  the  central  organization,  were  very  dilatory 
in  making  payments,  and  sometimes  neglected  to  do  so  alto- 
gether. The  sum  collected  was,  therefore,  frequently 
quite  insufificient  for  the  maintenance  of  a  strike,  and  was 
often  not  available  until  several  weeks  after  it  had  been  de- 
clared. Later  on  the  majority  of  the  associations  fixed  the 
strike  benefits  at  a  definite  amount,  but  adequate  reserve 
funds  from  which  to  pay  them  were  created  tardily.       \ 


"Constitution  of  the  Iron  Holders'  Union,  1863,  in  Proceedings,\ 
1863;  MS.  Report  of  President,  in  Proceedings  of  the  Cigar  Makers'' 
International  Union,  1866. 

8 


1 14  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [220 

The  first  important  union  to  adopt  this  policy  was  the 
Granite  Cutters,  who,  affected  indirectly  by  the  influence  of 
the  English  unions,  not  only  offered  strike  benefits  of  definite 
amount  at  their  first  national  convention  in  1877,  but  also 
made  adequate  provision  for  the  accumulation  of  a  fund 
from  which  to  pay  them.^^  The  Iron  Molders'  Union, 
founded  eighteen  years  earlier,  did  not  establish  an  emer- 
gency strike  fund  for  the  payment  of  strike  benefits  until 
1882,  and  not  until  1890  did  it  abolish  the  system  of  special 
assessments,  and  set  aside  a  fixed  proportion  of  the  monthly 
dues  for  the  maintenance  of  a  permanent  strike  fund.^®  The 
Cigar  Makers'  International  Union,  established  in  1864,  did 
not  give  adequate  support  to  strikes  until  after  the  reorgan- 
ization of  its  finances  according  to  the  English  system  in 
1880.^"  In  these  early  international  unions,  therefore,  the 
local  unions  relied  for  some  years  on  the  federal  associa- 
tion merely  for  supplementary  aid  in  their  conflicts  against 
employers.  Frequently  they  embarked  on  strikes  without 
consulting  the  international  officials,  and  appealed  to  them 
for  assistance  when  the  exhaustion  of  their  own  funds 
seemed  imminent.  Under  such  conditions  very  limited  con- 
trol could  be  exercised  by  the  federal  association  over  the 
declaration  and  conduct  of  strikes. 

At  the  present  day,  many  international  associations  make 
very  inadequate  provision  for  the  support  of  strikes,  and 
hence  exercise  very  limited  control  over  them.  Three 
unions  solicit  merely  voluntary  contributions  from  the  local 
unions.^^  The  table  on  the  next  page  shows  the  degree  of 
adequacy  of  the  strike  benefits  guaranteed  by  one  hundred 
and  ten  organizations. 

Only  sixty  unions  give  strike  benefits  of  definite  amount, 
and  but  thirty-four  of  these  maintain  a  reserve  fund  from 
which  to  pay  them.  Moreover,  while  the  reserve  fund  is 
large  in  a  few  associations,  amounting  sometimes  to  one 

"Constitution,  1877. 
^'  Constitution,  1882 ;  Constitution,  1890. 
^  Constitution,  1880. 

"  These  are  the  following  unions :  Cutting  Die  and  Cutter  Makers, 
Rubber  Workers,  and  Wire  Weavers. 


22 1]      ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION  II 5 


Character  of  Strike  Benefit 


Weekly  strike  benefit  of  definite  amount  guar- 
anteed  

No  weekly  strike  benefit  of  definite  amount 
guaranteed 

Amount  of  maximum  strike  benefit  fixed 

Amount  of  minimum  strike  benefit  fixed 

Total 


Number  of         Number  Main- 
Organizations      J?^"'"?  R"='^« 
*  Fund  for  Strikes 


60 

44 
5 
I 


34 

9 
4 
o 


47 


half  million  or  one  million  dollars,  in  others  it  is  absurdly 
small."  After  its  exhaustion,  which  occurs  during  the  early 
sta<^es  of  a  strike,  recourse  must  be  had  to  the  method  of 
special  assessments. 

The  remaining  fifty  associations  pay  such  sums  as  the 
funds  in  the  treasury  justify.  Thirteen  of  them,  however, 
maintain  a  strike  reserve,  and  give  probably  as  adequate  aid 
to  the  local  unions  in  their  conflicts  as  those  which  promise 
a  definite  benefit.  One  of  the  fifty  associations  gives  no 
aid,  however,  until  the  local  union  has  exhausted  all  of  its 
own  funds,-^  and  the  proportion  contributed  by  many  of  the 
others  is  undoubtedly  small.  In  many,  therefore,  of  the 
eighty-one  unions  which  attempt  to  regulate  only  strikes 

"Six  associations  provide  that  a  certain  proportion  of  the  per 
capita  tax  must  be  set  aside  until  a  strike  reserve  fund  of  the  fol- 
lowing amounts  has  been  accumulated  : — 

Street  and  Electric  Railway  Employees $1,000,000 

Railway  Trainmen 30CC000 

Locomotive  Firemen 250,000 

Railway  Conductors  200,000 

Elevator  Constructors  50,000 

Stone  Cutters   4,000 

Five  associations  do  not  allow  their  strike  reserve  fund  to  sink 
below  the  following  minimum  amounts : — 

Granite  Cutters  $25,000 

Tin  Plate  Workers 10,000 

Plasterers    4,000 

Slate  Workers  300 

Wood  Carvers  $1  per  member 

"  Cloth  Hat  and  Cap  Makers. 


Il6  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [222 

maintained  by  funds  from  the  central  treasury  such  conflicts 
are  supported  financially  by  and  hence  are  controlled  largely 
by  the  local  societies. 

The  most  advanced  stage  has  been  attained  by  the  twenty- 
nine  organizations  which  require  that  no  strikes,  whether 
supported  from  local  or  national  funds,  can  be  declared 
without  the  consent  of  the  national  authorities,-*  and  six- 
teen couple  the  prohibition  with  the  threat  to  expel  the  local 
union  or  to  fill  the  places  of  the  strikers  with  union  men 
if  this  rule  is  not  observed.  All  of  the  twenty-nine  unions 
require  also  that  the  national  regulations  regarding  the  dec- 
laration and  conduct  of  strikes  must  apply  to  all  such  con- 
flicts without  exception.  In  addition  to  the  above  unions, 
the  Boot  and  Shoe  Workers  forbid  unauthorized  strikes  in 
factories  using  the  union  label,  and  the  Garment  Workers 
forbid  such  strikes  when  the  firm  recognizes  the  union  or 
when  more  than  twenty-five  members  are  involved.  The 
Cloth  Hat  and  Cap  Makers  forbid  the  local  union  to  strike 
without  the  consent  of  the  national  union  when  all  of  its 
members  are  involved. 

The  trades  which  vest  control  over  strikes  in  the  national 
unions  are  those  engaged  in  transportation,  such  as  the 
Seamen  or  the  Railroad  Trainmen,  and  those  producing  a 
commodity  with  a  wide  territorial  market,  such  as  the  Iron, 
Steel  and  Tin  Plate  Workers,  the  Mine  Workers,  and  the 
Hatters.  These  trades  desire  centralized  control  over  strikes 
for  several  reasons.     In  the  first  place,  with  the  growth  in 

^*  The  local  unions  are  forbidden  to  strike  without  consent  of  the 
international  authorities  in  the  following  trades :  Atlantic  Coast 
Seamen,  Compressed  Air  Workers,  Glove  Workers,  Hatters,  Iron, 
Steel  and  Tin  Workers,  Machinists,  Maintenance-of-Way  Em- 
ployees, Meat  Cutters  and  Butcher  Workmen,  Molders,  Paper  Box 
Workers,  Pavers,  Printers,  Quarry  Workers,  Railroad  Telegraphers, 
Railroad  Trainmen,  Railway  Employees,  Railway  Expressmen,  Re- 
tail Clerks,  Saw  Smiths,  Slate  Workers,  Stove  Mounters  and  Steel 
Range  Workers,  Street  and  Electric  Railway  Employees,  Switch- 
men, Tin  Plate  Workers,  United  Mine  Workers,  Window  Glass 
Workers,  and  Wire  Weavers. 

The  Cigar  Makers  and  the  Piano,  Organ  and  Instrument  Work- 
ers do  not  expressly  forbid  such  conflicts,  but  prevent  them  indi- 
rectly by  prohibiting  the  local  societies  from  collecting  or  expending 
money  to  support  strikes  not  sanctioned  by  the  international  union. 


223]       ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION  11/ 

the  size  of  the  business  establishment  and  the  rise  of  em-  , 
ployers'  associations,  strikes  involve  numbers  too  large  to 
be  maintained  from  local  funds,  and  the  creation  of  an  ade- 
quate national  fund  for  this  purpose  becomes  necessary. 
Thus  in  the  Cigar  Makers'  International  Union  the  devel- 
opment of  a  central  strike  fund  from  about  1880  corre- 
sponds in  time  to  the  growth  in  the  size  of  the  business  es- 
tablishment following  the  introduction  of  machine  proc- 
esses.-" The  inauguration  of  a  central  strike  fund  by  the 
Iron  Molders  in  1890  followed  quickly  the  formation  of  the 
National  Defense  Association,  organized  to  wage  war  on 
national  lines  against  the  Iron  Holders'  Union.  In  conse- 
quence of  a  prearranged  plan  on  the  part  of  the  stove 
founders,  the  strike  began  in  1887  in  a  single  shop  in  St. 
Louis,  and  spread  rapidly  to  other  shops  controlled  by  the 
Defense  Association  until  five  thousand  molders  in  fifteen 
cities  were  involved.  Against  such  united  opposition  on 
the  part  of  employers  the  local  unions  are  powerless  to 
struggle.  Within  recent  years,  therefore,  all  strikes  of 
Iron  Molders  have  been  maintained  from  national  funds.-" 
In  the  second  place,  in  trades  producing  for  a  wide  terri- 
torial market  the  final  stage — prohibition  of  unauthorized 
strikes — has  resulted  from  a  desire,  first,  to  prevent  the 
declaration  of  strikes  in  violation  of  national  agreements, 
and,  second,  to  prevent  unwise  disastrous  conflicts  which 
cause  reductions  of  wages  not  only  in  the  community  where, 
a  strike  is  declared,  but  sympathetically  in  other  commun-) 
ities  also. 

Contrarily,  in  trades  serving  a  local  market  strikes  are 
usually  managed  by  the  local  unions,  first,  because  conditions 
of  employment  in  one  place  are  not  much  affected  by  those 
in  another,  and  second,  because,  the  size  of  the  business 
establishment  being  small,  strikes  involve  usually  only  a 
few  workers  and  can  be  maintained  from  local  funds.     For 

'"  Report  of  the  President,  in  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  Oc- 
tober, t88i.  p.  4. 

**  F.  W.  Hilbert,  "Trade  Agreements  in  the  Iron  Molders'  Union," 
in  Studies  in  American  Trade  Unionism,  ed.  by  Hollander  and 
Barnett. 


Il8  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [224 

this  reason,  strikes  in  the  building  trades  are  supported 
financially  by  and  hence  are  controlled  very  largely  by  the 
local  societies.  Thus,  the  strike  benefits  given  by  the 
Bricklayers'  and  Masons'  International  Union,  formed  in 
1866,  have  always  been  wholly  inadequate  in  amount,  and 
have  been  paid  from  revenue  collected  by  the  unsatisfactory 
method  of  special  assessments.  The  local  societies  have 
relied  almost  wholly  on  their  own  resources,  and  have 
appealed  very  rarely  to  the  international  union  for  aid. 
For  example,  from  1871  until  1880  not  a  single  strike  re- 
ceived the  financial  support  of  the  Bricklayers'  and  Masons' 
International  Union,  though  provision  for  such  support 
existed  in  the  constitution.  From  1880  to  1890,  on  the 
average  only  one  strike  each  year  was  supported  by  the 
federal  association,  though  strikes  of  a  purely  local  char- 
acter occurred  frequently.  During  the  hard  times  suc- 
ceeding the  panic  of  1893  there  were  several  years  when 
the  international  association  paid  not  a  single  strike  benefit, 
though  complaint  was  made  about  the  number  of  strikes 
declared  by  the  local  societies  at  such  an  inauspicious  time.^' 
In  1897  this  association  adopted  a  rule  that  a  strike  must  in- 
volve all  members  of  a  subordinate  union  before  it  should 
receive  support  from  the  international  treasury.  Strikes 
against  an  individual  firm  or  against  a  minority  of  the  em- 
ployers of  a  city  must  be  maintained  by  the  local  unions.^^ 
The  policy  of  the  Journeymen  Plumbers  has  been  very 
similar.^^  Very  rarely  has  the  international  union  furnished 
money  for  the  maintenance  of  strikes,  and  in  1900  a  rule 
was  adopted  to  the  effect  that  no  aid  should  be  granted  from 
the  central  treasury  unless  at  least  one  third  of  the  members 
of  the  local  society  were  involved  in  a  strike.  The  Journey- 
men Horseshoers'  International  Union,  formed  in  1874, 
whose  members  work  under  industrial  conditions  similar  to 
those  in  the  building  trades,  does  not  pay  strike  benefits  of 

'"  Annual  Reports  of  the  President  and  Secretary,  1893-1896. 
^  Constitution,  1897. 

^°  Plumbers,  Gas  Fitters  and  Steam  Fitters'  Journal,  October,  1895, 
p.  3;  November,  1895,  pp.  5-7. 


225]       ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION         II9 

definite  amount,  but  grants  aid  to  local  unions  when  engaged 
in  serious  difficulties.  The  International  Typographical 
Union,  a  large  part  of  whose  members  are  engaged  in  meet- 
ing the  needs  of  local  customers,  also  made  no  attempt  to 
pay  strike  benefits  until  1885.  Moreover,  until  a  few  years 
ago,  the  annual  receipts  from  the  strike  tax  were  barely  suffi- 
cient to  pay  continuous  strike  benefits  to  eighty  men. 

The  need  of  an  adequate  national  strike  fund  has  begun 
to  be  felt  even  in  trades  producing  for  a  local  market,  since 
with  the  growth  of  local  employers'  associations  strikes  more 
and  more  frequently  involve  all  or  a  large  part  of  the  or- 
ganized mem'bers  of  the  trade  in  a  community,  and  with 
the  establishment  of  such  a  fund  there  has  followed  national 
control  over  local  conflicts.  But  with  the  exception  of  the 
Pavers,  Rammers,  Flaggers,  Bridge  and  Curb  Stone  Setters, 
the  Printers,  and  the  Street  and  Electric  Railway  Employees, 
none  of  the  trades  serving  a  local  patronage  forbid  sub- 
ordinate societies  to  strike  without  the  sanction  of  the 
national  authorities. 

National  unions,  particularly  in  those  trades  producing 
commodities  with  a  wide  territorial  market,  have  striven 
from  the  first  years  of  their  organization  to  establish  uni- 
form conditions  of  employment  for  all  competing  manufac- 
turers. The  attainment  of  such  uniformity  has  been  a  diffi- 
cult task.  The  adoption  of  a  national  scale  of  wages  was 
discussed  at  conventions  of  the  Iron  Holders  before 
the  Civil  War,  but  not  until  1891  was  a  uniform  scale 
adopted  for  one  branch  of  the  trade,  namely,  molders  work- 
ing in  stove  foundries.  For  other  branches  of  the  trade  a 
national  scale  of  wages  has  never  been  attained.  Appren- 
ticeship rules  were  adopted  at  the  first  national  conventions 
of  the  Bricklayers  and  Masons,'"  Granite  Cutters,'^  Plumb- 
ers,^- Pattern  Makers,  and  other  unions.     As  all  of  these 

*"  Constitution,  1867;  Constitution,  1876. 

"Constitution,  1877;  Constitution.  1884. 

'- Proceedings,  1891,  pp.  25-26;  Proceedings,  1896.  in  Supplement 
to  United  Association  Journal,  vol.  3,  no.  i,  pp.  40-42;  Proceed- 
ings, 1898. 


120  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [226 

found  that  enforcement  was  impracticable,  the  rules  were 
soon  abolished,  in  some  cases  never  to  be  readopted. 

One  obstacle  to  the  establishment  of  uniform  conditions 
of  employment  has  been  the  inability  of  the  weak  local  so- 
cieties to  secure  as  good  wages,  hours,  and  other  conditions 
as  the  strong  local  unions  enjoyed.  The  Iron  Molders' 
Union  began  to  regulate  apprenticeship  in  1864,  but  in  1876 
the  president  of  the  organization  declared  that  the  weak  so- 
cieties had  not  compelled  and  probably  never  would  compel 
the  employers  to  conform  to  the  international  apprenticeship 
rules.  Even  in  recent  years,  during  the  existence  of  na- 
tional agreements  with  employers,  complaints  have  been 
made  that  these  rules  were  not  being  enforced  by  some  of 
the  weaker  societies.^^  Frequently,  indeed,  national  organ- 
izations are  forced  to  exempt  certain  subordinate  unions 
from  the  application  of  rules  governing  the  terms  of  the 
labor  contract  because  the  effort  of  these  subordinate  unions 
to  enforce  such  regulations  would  undoubtedly  be  suicidal. 
For  example,  certain  new  and  poorly  organized  local  socie- 
ties of  bricklayers  which  could  not  compel  employers  to 
accept  the  nine-hour  work  day  required  by  the  international 
organization  were  repeatedly  granted  extensions  of  time 
in  which  to  enforce  it.  Finally,  in  1889,  twenty-one  local 
unions  whose  members  were  working  longer  than  nine  hours 
had  their  charters  revoked,  and  for  the  same  reason  forty- 
one  applications  for  new  charters  were  refused.  Such 
severe  measures  were  found  inexpedient,  and  the  next  con- 
vention vested  the  international  executive  board  with  dis- 
cretion to  suspend  the  application  of  the  nine-hour  rule  to 
newly  organized  societies  whenever  necessary.  This  policy 
of  the  Bricklayers  has  been  followed  by  various  other 
trades.^* 

^In  1864  the  Iron  Molders'  Union  merely  attempted  to  regulate 
the  term  of  apprenticeship  (Constitution,  in  Proceedings,  1864). 
The  ratio  of  apprentices  to  journeymen  was  fixed  at  some  time 
prior  to  1874  (Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings,  1876).  For 
recent  reports  of  non-enforcement,  see  Report  of  the  President,  in 
Proceedings,   1895;  Iron  Holders'  Journal.  October,  1904,  p.  750. 

"Proceedings,  1886;  Proceedings,  1888;  Proceedings,  1889. 


227]       ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION  121 

Another  obstacle  in  the  way  of  uniform  regulation  of  ap- 
prenticeship has  been  the  variation  in  the  methods  of  work- 
ing in  dififerent  places.  The  length  of  the  working  day  is 
not  affected,  indeed,  by  such  differences,  but  the  term  of 
apprenticeship  and  the  rate  of  wages  are  very  much  affected. 
Thus,  in  the  cigar  making  industry  the  varying  degree  to 
which  new  machine  processes  and  division  of  labor  have 
been  introduced  in  different  parts  of  the  country  has  made 
difficult  the  adoption  of  uniform  apprentice  rules.  In  Flor- 
ida the  Cuban  and  Spanish  cigar  makers  work  almost  ex- 
clusively by  hand.  In  many  sections  of  the  country  the 
"  mold  "  is  used  on  all  cigars  produced.  In  Baltimore  and 
other  places  both  hand-made  and  mold-made  cigars  are 
turned  out  by  the  same  factory.  Sometimes  one  man  makes 
the  whole  cigar.  Sometimes  a  team  of  workers  is  em- 
ployed ;  that  is,  one  person  makes  the  filler  and  another  rolls 
the  wrapper.  A  team  worker  using  the  mold  can  learn  how 
to  do  his  part  of  the  work  in  a  few  months,  while  several 
years  are  required  to  attain  skill  in  making  the  whole  cigar 
by  hand.  Evidently,  therefore,  a  uniform  apprentice  rule 
for  cigar  makers  in  all  parts  of  the  country  is  impracticable. 

Similarly,  the  journeymen  who  make  brooms  by  machine 
in  a  large  eastern  factory  cannot  be  required  to  demand 
the  same  wages  as  the  hand-workers  in  the  small  shops  of 
the  West.  The  cigar  maker  of  the  Atlantic  Coast,  the 
Pacific  Coast,  and  certain  sections  of  the  Middle  West  who 
manufactures  a  high  grade  of  cigars  demands  a  larger  wage 
than  his  less  skilled  fellow-craftsman  of  the  Pennsylvania 
district  who  makes  a  cheap  grade  of  cigars.  The  New  Eng- 
land die  cutter  who  makes  only  shoe  die  cutters  requires 
less  skill  and  hence  receives  lower  wages  than  the  workers 
in  the  shops  of  New  York  City  where  more  complicated  dies 
of  various  sorts  are  produced.  Differences  in  the  cost  of 
living  must  also  be  taken  into  account  in  fixing  wages. 
Because  of  such  differences,  employees  of  the  "  meat  trust " 
receive  higher  wages  for  the  same  kind  of  work  in  Chicago 
than  in  Butte,  Montana,  or  in  Kansas  City. 


122  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [228 

Apprenticeship  was  usually  the  first  of  the  conditions  of 
employment  to  be  regulated  by  the  federal  organizations, 
and  is  the  one  most  commonly  regulated  by  them  at  the  pres- 
ent day,  probably  because  in  all  trades  the  interurban  move- 
ment of  labor  renders  local  apprenticeship  rules  wholly  in- 
effective to  limit  the  supply  of  labor.  About  fifty  unions, 
most  of  which  are  in  comparatively  unskilled  trades,  make 
no  attempt  to  regulate  apprenticeship,  either  locally  or  na- 
tionally. Forty-nine  of  the  remaining  eighty  trades  main- 
tain national  apprenticeship  rules.  The  scope  of  these  rules, 
however,  varies  widely.  Two  unions  do  nothing  more  than 
fix  the  age  at  which  one  may  become  an  apprentice.  Thirty- 
two  of  the  remaining  forty-seven  designate  both  the  term 
of  apprenticeship  and  the  ratio  of  apprentices  to  journeymen. 
The  others  fix  either  the  term  or  the  ratio,  but  not  both. 

The  establishment  of  a  uniform  working  day  for  all  sub- 
ordinate unions  was  agitated  by  the  Iron  Holders,  Machin- 
ists and  Blacksmiths,  Ship  Carpenters  and  Caulkers,  Coach 
Makers,  and  Bricklayers  during  the  period  immediately  fol- 
lowing the  Civil  War,  One  of  the  purposes  of  the  National 
Labor  Union,  a  federation  of  all  organized  crafts  founded 
in  1866,  was  to  secure  the  adoption  of  an  eight-hour  day 
by  all  international  trade  unions.  The  early  federal  organ- 
ization of  coopers  ordered  that  all  members  work  not  more 
than  ten  hours  a  day  after  May  i,  1871.^^  The  Painters' 
Grand  Lodge,  organized  in  1871,  started  at  once  an  agitation 
in  favor  of  an  eight-hour  day  for  all  members  of  the  trade.^^ 
The  Iron,  Steel  and  Tin  Workers  adopted  their  first  rule 
regarding  the  length  of  the  working  day  in  1880.  The 
Cigar  Makers  began  their  efforts  at  national  regulation  of 
the  hours  of  labor  in  1881,  and  the  Bricklayers  in  1887. 
Nevertheless,  at  the  present  time  only  a  small  number  of  na- 
tional unions,  about  eighteen  of  the  one  hundred  and  thirty 
studied,  have  a  definite  rule  to  the  effect  that  members  must 

^  Coopers'  Monthly  Journal,  December,  1870. 
'"The  Carpenter,  February,  1882. 


229]       ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    PA'     NATIONAL    UNION  1 23 

not  work  more  than  a  certain  number  of  hours  each  day.'^ 
Two  other  international  organizations  fix  the  number  of 
hours  in  the  working  day  for  manufacturers  who  have  been 
granted  the  use  of  the  union  label.^* 

The  maintenance  of  national  wage  scales  has  been  so  diffi- 
cult that  even  the  older  organizations  have  succeeded  in  es- 
tablishing them  only  within  recent  years.  The  Glass  Bottle 
Blowers  did  not  have  a  uniform  scale  of  wages  until  1890, 
and  not  until  that  same  year  did  the  Iron  Molders  secure  a 
national  scale  for  stove  molders.  The  Window  Glass 
Workers  established  a  national  scale  in  1901,  the  Hatters 
(for  the  makers  of  stiff  hats)  in  1902,  the  Potters  in  1904, 
the  Garment  Workers  and  the  Granite  Cutters  in  1905. 
Yet  at  present  more  national  unions  regulate  wages  than 
hours  of  labor.  Twenty-five  national  and  international 
unions  regulate  the  wages  of  all  members,^''  and  five  others 
regulate  the  wages  of  a  certain  class  or  subdivision  of  their 
members.*"  Four  more  require  that  all  employees  in  fac- 
tories which  have  been  granted  the  use  of  the  union  label 
must  receive  a  certain  minimum  wage.*^ 

■^  These  are  the  following  unions :  Bricklayers  and  Masons,  Cigar 
Makers,  Cloth  Hat  and  Cap  Makers,  Coopers,  Cutting  Die  and 
Cutter  Makers,  Elastic  Goring  Weavers,  Elevator  Constructors. 
Glass  Bottle  Blowers,  Granite  Cutters,  Hatters,  Locomotive  Firemen 
and  Enginemen,  Iron  Molders,  Paper  Makers,  Pulp,  Sulphite  and 
Paper  Mill  Workers,  Plumbers.  Print  Cutters,  Printers,  Table  Knife 
Grinders,  and  Wood,  Wire,  and  Metal  Lathers. 

^  The  Travellers'  Goods  and  Leather  Novelty  Workers,  and  the 
Carpenters  and  Joiners  for  members  who  are  machine  wood  workers. 

"  These  are  the  following  unions :  Cloth,  Hat  and  Cap  Makers, 
Compressed  Air  Workers,  Coopers,  Cutting  Die  and  Cutter  Mak- 
ers, Elastic  Goring  Weavers,  Flint  Glass  Workers.  Glass  Bottle 
Blowers,  Granite  Cutters,  Iron,  Steel  and  Tin  Workers.  Lace 
Operatives.  Leather  Workers  on  Horse  Goods,  Machine  Textile 
Printers.  Pilots.  Potters,  Print  Cutters,  Saw  Smiths,  Shirt,  Waist 
and  Laundry  Workers,  Stove  Mounters,  Table  Knife  Grinders,  Tin 
Plate  Workers,  Wall  Paper  Machine  Printers,  Window  Glass  Cut- 
ters and  Flatteners.  Window  Glass  Workers,  and  Wire  Weavers. 

"Bill  Posters  and  Billers.  for  those  travelling  with  circuses; 
Bridge  and  Structural  Iron  Workers,  for  those  working  on  bridges 
outside  the  jurisdiction  of  any  local  union;  Garment  Workers,  for 
the  makers  of  shirts  and  overalls;  Hatters,  for  makers  of  stiff 
hats;  Theatrical  Stage  Employees,  for  those  travelling  with  theat- 
rical companies  and  not  in  the  employ  of  local  houses. 

"  Carpenters,  for  machine  wood  workers,  Cigar  Makers,  Printers, 
and  Wood  Workers. 


124  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [23O 

Fifty-eight  national  and  international  unions  do  not  at- 
tempt to  fix  the  conditions  of  employment,  and  leave  all  reg- 
ulation of  such  matters  to  the  local  societies.  Fourteen 
other  organizations  have  adopted  national  apprenticeship 
rules,  but  do  not  determ.ine  the  conditions  of  employment 
for  journeymen.  In  many  of  these  seventy-two  associa- 
tions, however,  the  officers  and  delegates  to  conventions  use 
their  influence  to  bring  about  uniformity.  Resolutions  re- 
questing the  local  societies  not  to  accept  less  than  a  certain 
wage  or  to  work  longer  than  certain  hours  have  been  adopted 
from  time  to  time  by  the  annual  conventions  of  some  of 
these  unions.  Thirteen  or  more  of  them  require  that  all 
local  agreements  must  receive  the  sanction  of  the  interna- 
tional officers,  and  thus  give  these  officers  an  opportunity 
to  urge  societies  lagging  behind  the  others  to  pursue  a  more 
aggressive  policy  in  bargaining  with  employers.  Finally^ 
in  those  organizations  maintaining  an  adequate  strike  fund^ 
the  officials  vested  with  control  over  its  disbursement  pro- 
mote uniform  conditions  of  employment  by  supporting  the 
strikes  of  those  societies  which  have  secured  less  favorable 
terms  than  the  others.  Save  in  a  few  instances,  however,  no 
very  great  amount  of  uniformity  has  been  brought  about  by 
any  of  these  methods. 

The  extent  to  which  the  remaining  forty-eight  national' 
and  international  unions  interfere  in  matters  of  collective 
bargaining  is  not  easy  to  measure.  On  one  occasion  the 
writer,  who  had  spoken  of  the  many  detailed  shop  rules 
in  the  constitution  of  a  certain  national  organization,  was 
told  by  its  secretary  that  none  of  these  rules  were  mandatory. 
They  had  been  adopted  merely  to  encourage  local  unions  to 
secure  such  conditions  from  employers  whenever  it  should 
be  possible.  The  same  policy  has  been  followed  by  other 
unions.  Moreover,  most  national  organizations  provide  the 
minimum  or  worst  conditions  that  the  local  societies  are 
permitted  to  accept.  If  the  standard  set  by  the  national 
union  is  very  low,  most  or  all  of  its  subordinate  societies 
may  have  secured  better  conditions,  and  hence  the  national 
regulations  may  exert  little  or  no  influence. 


231]      ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION  12$ 

Two  facts  are  clear,  however.  In  the  first  place,  the 
extent  to  which  the  remaining  forty-eight  national  or  inter- 
national organizations  interfere  in  matters  of  collective  bar- 
gaining varies  widely.  At  the  one  extreme  are  five  national 
organizations  whose  only  attempt  to  regulate  the  conditions 
of  employment  has  been  the  adoption  of  a  few  shop  rules 
relating  to  the  employment  of  foremen,  methods  of  work, 
and  other  questions  of  shop  management.  At  the  other  ex- 
treme are  four  organizations  which  regulate  practically  all 
the  conditions  of  employment  save  a  few  minor  details 
which  remain  under  the  control  of  the  local  union.  In  the 
second  place,  only  a  small  group  of  national  unions — not 
more  than  nineteen  out  of  one  hundred  and  thirty — regulate 
three  of  the  four  matters  of  collective  bargaining  here  con- 
sidered, that  is,  apprenticeship,  wages,  hours,  and  shop  man- 
agement.^- Small  unions  such  as  the  Cutting  Die  and  Cut- 
ter JMakers,  Print  Cutters,  Saw  Smiths,  and  Wall  Paper 
Machine  Printers,  particularly  if  they  are  concentrated  in  a 
limited  area  (as  are  the  Elastic  Goring  Weavers  and  the 
Table  Knife  Grinders),  have  been  especially  successful  in 
establishing  uniform  conditions  of  employment. 

Many  of  the  national  associations  which  have  been  suc- 
cessful in  regulating  the  conditions  of  employment  have  not 
been  able  to  exercise  much  control  over  the  declaration  and 
conduct  of  strikes.  Regulations  concerning  the  internal 
administration  of  the  local  societies  bear  little  relation  to 
the  nature  of  the  employment,  and  have  been  adopted  by 
national  unions  which  exert  little  influence  over  matters  of 


"The  following  unions  regulate  all  four  of  these  matters  by  col- 
lective bargaining:  Glass  Bottle  Blowers.  Granite  Cutters,  Iron, 
Steel  and  Tin  Workers,  and  Table  Knife  Grinders. 

The  following  regulate  three  matters  for  all  members  and  the 
fourth  for  part  of  the  members:  Cloth,  Hat  and  Cap  Makers,  shop 
matters  only  for  factories  using  the  label;  Hatters,  wages  only  for 
the  makers  of  stiff  hats;  Printers,  wages  only  for  offices  which  have 
the  label. 

The  following  regulate  thr^  matters  of  collective  bargaining: 
Cigar  Makers,  Coopers,  Cutting  Die  and  Cutter  Makers,  Elastic 
Goring  Weavers,  Flint  Glass  Workers,  Garment  Workers,  Iron 
Molders,  Print  Cutters,  Saw  Smiths,  Wall  Paper  Machine  Printers, 
Window  Glass  Cutters  and  Flatteners,  Window  Glass  Workers. 


126  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [232 

collective  bargaining.  The  Cigar  Makers  and  the  Iron  Mold- 
ers  are  centralized  in  all  three  respects.  The  federal  organi- 
zations of  hatters,  iron,  steel  and  tin  workers,  and  window 
glass  workers  not  only  fix  most  of  the  conditions  of  employ- 
ment, but  also  forbid  unauthorized  strikes.  All  of  these  are 
old  unions  whose  members  are  engaged  in  producing  com- 
modities with  a  wide  territorial  market.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  federal  associations  of  a  considerable  group  of  unions 
are  very  decentralized.  Among  these  are  the  Blast  Furnace 
Workers,  who,  though  producing  for  a  national  matket,  are 
unskilled  and  were  organized  very  recently ;  the  Bricklayers, 
who,  though  organized  for  many  years,  serve  a  local  patron- 
age ;  and  the  Hod  Carriers,  who  are  unskilled,  were  recently 
organized,  and  serve  a  local  patronage. 

The  early  federal  trade  unions  secured  little  obedience 
from  the  constituent  local  societies,  although  the  require- 
ments were  few.  The  chief  obligations  to  the  national  union 
were  quarterly  or  monthly  reports  concerning  the  condition 
of  the  trade,  wages,  hours,  members  admitted,  and  members 
expelled,  and  an  account  of  local  receipts  and  expenditures. 
Even  these  few  duties  were  not  fulfilled.  In  1864  the  presi- 
dent of  the  Iron  IMolders  asked  why  local  officials  so  per- 
sistently neglected  to  send  monthly  reports.*^  Ten  or  fif- 
teen years  later  the  presidents  of  the  Iron  Holders  were  still 
asking  the  same  question.**  Frequently,  also,  dues  and  spe- 
cial assessments  remained  unpaid.  In  1874  the  secretary  of 
the  Bricklayers'  and  Masons'  International  Union  reported 
that  none  of  the  local  unions  had  paid  all  the  quarterly  dues 
during  the  previous  year.  One  had  paid  for  three  quarters, 
most  of  them  for  one  or  two  quarters,  a  small  group  had 
paid  nothing  at  all.*^  In  1873  the  Cigar  Makers'  Interna- 
tional Union  abandoned  for  a  time  its  efforts  to  pay  a  death 
benefit  because  the  local  unions  failed  to  pay  their  assess- 
ments.    On  one  occasion  early  tin  the  history  of  the  Brick- 

*^  Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings,  1864. 

**  For  example,  see  Iron  Molders'  Journal,  April  30,  1875. 

"  Report  of  the  Secretary,  in  Proceedings,  1874. 


233J       ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION  12/ 

layers'  and  Masons'  International  Union  the  general  presi- 
dent, desiring  funds  for  the  support  of  a  certain  strike, 
issued  a  circular  asking  for  voluntary  contributions  instead 
of  levying  compulsory  assessments  A  larger  number  of 
local  unions,  he  declared,  responded  to  appeals  for  voluntary 
contributions  than  to  demands  for  compulsory  assessments,*® 

The  local  unions  were  bound  to  the  central  association  by 
such  slender  ties  that  threat  of  suspension  had  little  effect  in 
compelling  obedience  to  international  rules.  Indeed,  local 
unions  frequently  seceded,  sometimes  for  the  flimsiest 
reasons.  Thus,  the  Cincinnati  society  of  cigar  makers 
seceded  from  the  international  union  of  the  trade  about 
1876  because  of  its  opposition  to  the  international  rule  ad- 
mitting women  to  membership.*^  The  society  reaffiliated  in 
April,  1878,  only  to  secede  again  in  January,  1879,  because 
it  objected  to  contributing  money  for  the  support  of  certain 
strikes  sanctioned  by  the  international  association.*^  For 
some  years  there  was  in  Chicago  an  independent  local  union 
known  as  the  United  Order  of  American  Bricklayers.  In 
August,  1884,  it  joined  the  international  union  of  the  trade. 
In  1886  it  withdrew  because  of  the  decision  of  the  general 
session  regarding  the  payment  of  its  accumulated  dues  and 
assessments.*" 

In  all  trades  there  have  existed  local  societies  which  have 
maintained  their  independence  of  the  federal  association  for 
a  longer  or  shorter  period.  Independent  local  unions  seem 
to  have  flourished  particularly  in  San  Francisco,  perhaps 
because  the  industrial  isolation  of  the  cities  on  the  Pacific 
Coast  has  made  cooperation  with  societies  of  the  trade  in 
other  parts  of  the  country  less  imperative.  The  San  Fran- 
cisco local  union  of  iron  molders  severed  its  connection  with 
the  federal  association  of  the  trade  in  1872,  and  maintained 
its  independence  for  some  years.°°     Until  1886  the  society 

*•  Report  of  the  President,  in  MS.  Proceedings  of  the  Fifth  An- 
nual Convention,  1870. 
*' Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  March  10,  June  10,  1878. 
^'Ibid.,  May.  1880. 

*"  Report  of  the  Secretary,  in  Proceedings,  1886,  p.  38. 
**  Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings,  1872. 


128  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [234 

of  cigar  makers  in  San  Francisco  refused  to  join  the  inter- 
national union.  The  brewery  workmen  of  San  Francisco 
broke  away  from  the  United  Brewery  Workmen  of  America 
in  1889,  and  remained  independent  for  several  years,^^  and 
other  instances  might  be  noted.  Independent  local  unions 
have  been  and  are  still  particularly  numerous  among  the 
boot  and  shoe  workers.  Undoubtedly,  the  lack  for  many 
years  of  any  one  central  union  of  boot  and  shoe  workers  has 
tended  to  promote  sectionalism.  In  some  of  the  old  centers 
of  the  industry  local  societies  have  maintained  an  independent 
existence  for  generations,  and  are  reluctant  to  merge  them- 
selves into  any  federation.  Many  of  the  boot  and  shoe 
workers  were  organized  into  local  assemblies  of  the  Knights 
of  Labor,^-  and  these  local  assemblies  since  the  decline  of 
the  Knights  have  held  aloof  from  the  Boot  and  Shoe 
Workers'  Union. 

The  different  sections  of  the  country  are,  however,  being 
continually  knit  together  in  closer  economic  ties.  Employ- 
ers separated  by  wide  stretches  of  territory  are  competing 
keenly,  and  a  slight  change  in  the  rate  of  wages  paid  by  one 
affects  the  amount  of  business  done  by  the  others.  The 
independent  local  union  in  industries  with  a  national  market 
is  becoming  more  and  more  impotent  to  regulate  the  condi- 
tions of  employment,  and  is  rapidly  disappearing. 

Such  independent  societies  still  flourish  in  industries 
which,  like  building  construction,  satisfy  local  needs.  In 
these  industries  the  workers  in  one  community  are  not 
hampered  in  their  efforts  to  improve  the  conditions  of  em- 
ployment by  conditions  existing  in  other  places.  They  must 
protect  their  wage  scale,  however,  from  underbidding  by 
workmen  who  come  from  other  places.  In  the  building 
trades  this  is  accomplished  to  some  extent  by  means  of  the 
"  exclusive  agreement,"  under  which  the  contractors  agree 
to  employ  only  union  men,  provided  that  the  trade  unionists 

"  Brauer-Zeitung,  January  28,  1893. 

"  Discussions  of  the  independent  local  unions  of  boot  and  shoe 
workers  can  be  found  in  nearly  every  number  of  the  union  journal 
from  1900  to  1904. 


23 5 J       ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION         1 29 

agree  on  their  part  to  work  only  for  employers  who  are 
parties  to  the  compact.  The  local  union,  thus  protected 
from  incoming  journeymen,  can  bid  defiance  to  the  federal 
association. 

Independent  local  unions  have  been  very  numerous  in  the 
building  trades,  particularly  in  the  large  cities,  where  the 
societies,  usually  with  a  large  membership,  are  able  to  main- 
tain fairly  adequate  funds  for  the  payment  of  strike  and 
other  benefits.  A  notable  example  has  been  the  Chicago 
local  union  of  bricklayers,  which  has  a  membership  of  five 
thousand.  Though  Chicago  is  said  to  be  "  the  dumping 
ground  for  all  bricklayers  going  west,"  the  Chicago  local 
union  has  been  amply  protected  by  its  exclusive  agreement.'*' 
The  painters,  decorators,  and  paper  hangers  of  New  York 
have  also  maintained  an  independent  society  for  many  years. 
Officials  of  such  independent  local  unions  have  declared  to 
the  writer  that  they  have  nothing  to  gain  and  even  something 
to  lose  by  federating  with  the  international  union  of  the 
trade.  If,  for  example,  they  joined  the  federation,  members 
of  sister  societies  would  have  to  be  admitted  without  pay- 
ment of  an  initiation  fee,  and  so  the  revenue  received  from 
this  source  would  be  lost.  The  younger  members  who  wish 
to  travel  desire  an  alliance  with  the  international  union, 
since  such  an  alliance  would  help  them  to  find  employment 
in  other  places,  but  these  would-be  wanderers  are  a  small 
minority. 

As  has  been  already  pointed  out,  however,  even  in  the 
building  industry  contractors  in  different  cities  are  begin- 
ning to  compete,  and  cooperation  between  local  societies  for 
purposes  of  collective  bargaining  is  becoming  more  and  more 
necessary.  In  addition,  the  exclusive  agreement  has  fallen 
into  disfavor  because  it  has  been  used  to  build  up  the  power 
of  employers'  associations,  and  this  power  has  been  used 
against  the  union.  Certainly  this  device  could  serve  only 
temporarily  to  retard  the  disappearance  of  the  independent 
local  union  in  these  trades. 

"  Proceedings  of  the  Twenty-ninth  Annual  Convention  of  the 
Bricklayers'  and  Masons'  International  Union,  1895,  pp.  13-16,  46-52. 


130  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [236 

The  American  Federation  of  Labor  has  been  used  as  a 
means  to  force  independent  societies  to  join  the  international 
unions.  The  Federation  withholds  its  cooperation  from  the 
independent  societies ;  and  the  failure  to  obtain  this  coopera- 
tion is  a  serious  handicap,  particularly  to  those  trades  which 
make  important  use  of  the  boycott  or  the  union  label,  since 
without  its  aid  a  boycott  cannot  be  effectively  maintained 
nor  patronage  secured  for  goods  bearing  the  union  label. 
Independent  societies  of  boot  and  shoe  workers  have  been 
forced  to  join  the  Boot  and  Shoe  Workers'  Union  because 
the  manufacturers  found  that  they  could  not  increase  their 
sales  by  attaching  the  label  of  such  societies.^*  The  Amer- 
ican Federation  of  Labor  has  a  rule  that  a  local  society  sus- 
pended from  or  refusing  to  join  the  international  union  of 
the  trade  cannot  affiliate  with  the  central  labor  union  or 
federation  of  trades  in  its  community.  Sometimes  central 
labor  unions  sympathize  with  the  local  societies  and  are 
reluctant  to  enforce  this  rule,  but  on  various  occasions  they 
have  been  compelled  to  do  so  under  threat  of  expulsion  by 
the  officials  of  the  Federation.^^ 

The  most  potent  factor  in  strengthening  the  allegiance  of 
the  local  unions  to  the  international  union  and  in  promoting 
obedience  to  the  rules  has  been  the  growth  in  the  activities 
of  these  central  organizations.  Often  an  increase  in  dues 
was  opposed  in  the  early  international  unions  because  it  was 
argued  that  if  the  local  unions  refused  to  pay  low  dues,  they 
certainly  would  not  pay  high  ones.  Experience  has  shown, 
however,  exactly  the  contrary  to  be  true.  The  support  of 
various  activities  from  a  central  rather  than  a  local  treasury 
gives  an  added  value  to  membership  in  the  federation.  Thus 
the  guarantee  of  adequate  support  of  members  on  strike  has 

"  See,  for  example,  Shoe  Workers'  Journal,  February  and  March, 
1903.  pp.  26-28;  Report  of  President,  in  Proceedings,  1904. 

"  The  Federated  Trades  Council  of  the  Pacific  Coast  was  sus- 
pended by  the  American  Federation  of  Labor  for  failure  to  expel 
the  independent  San  Francisco  society  of  brewery  workmen,  and 
was  reinstated  only  on  the  promise  to  carry  out  this  decision 
(Brauer-Zeitung,  December  19,  26,  1891 ;  January  28,  1893).  For 
another  instance,  see  Brauer-Zeitung,  December  9,  1899;  January 
13,  1900. 


237]      ABSORPTION    OF    POWER    BY    NATIONAL    UNION         I3I 

not  only  increased  international  control  over  strikes,  but  has 
developed  a  desire  on  the  part  of  the  local  unions  to  pay 
their  assessments  promptly  and  otherwise  obey  the  rules, 
in  order  to  be  eligible  to  the  benefit  in  case  of  need.  The 
members  transfer  their  primary  allegiance  from  the  local 
to  the  central  organization  when  sick,  death,  and  out-of-work 
benefits  are  paid  from  national  funds.  For  this  reason,  we 
find  the  union  leaders  who  favor  a  strongly  centralized  inter- 
national union  advocating  strenuously  at  meetings  of  con- 
vention or  in  the  editorial  columns  of  the  trade  journal  the 
payment  of  such  benefits  by  the  federal  associations. 


PART  III 

THE   MACHINERY   OF   GOVERNMENT 


CHAPTER  VII 
THE  SOURCES  OF  THE  TRADE-UNION  CONSTITUTION 

American  trade  unionists,  in  piecing  together  their  ma- 
chinery of  government,  have  borrowed  from  various  sources. 
Information  concerning  the  rise  of  local  societies  of  work- 
ers in  the  same  town  or  city  is  so  fragmentary  that  all 
statements  concerning  the  sources  from  which  they  drew 
their  form  of  government  must  be  merely  guesses  and  there- 
fore unprofitable.  Our  knowledge  of  the  federation  of  these 
local  societies  into  national  or  international  trade  unions, 
which  occurred  much  later,  is  much  more  definite,  and  the 
influences  affecting  their  governmental  development  can  be 
traced. 

The  secret  or  fraternal  societies  have  exercised  an  impor- 
tant influence  on  the  government  of  the  national  unions. 
The  rules  adopted  by  the  first  permanent  national  trade 
union  in  the  United  States,  the  National  Typographical 
Union,  were  apparently  borrowed  by  the  committee  which 
drew  them  up  in  1851  "almost  without  change  except  for 
unimportant  omissions  from  the  Constitution  of  the  Right 
Worthy  Grand  Lodge  of  the  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows  of  the  United  States  of  America.  No  mention  of 
this  fact  was  made  in  the  report  of  the  committee,  but  a 
comparison  of  the  two  constitutions  reveals  such  striking 
similarities,  that  the  connection  between  them  can  be  clearly 
established."^ 

^  G.  E.  Barnett,  "  Origin  of  the  Constitution  of  the  Typographical 
Union,"  in  Johns  Hopkins  University  Circular,  new  sen,  1905,  no.  6. 

132 


239]      SOURCES    OF    THE    TRADE-UNION    CONSTITUTION         1 33 

The  constitution  of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Odd  Fellows  was 
well  suited  for  the  kind  of  organization  which  the  founders 
of  the  International  Typographical  Union  sought  to  create. 
The  proposed  activities  of  the  association  were  few  in  num- 
ber, the  primary  one  being  control  over  journeymen  who 
moved  from  one  place  to  another.  This  movement  had 
until  then  been  partly  controlled  by  correspondence  between 
the  local  societies.  There  was  needed  a  very  decentralized 
form  of  government,  clothed  chiefly  with  legislative  powers. 
Of  such  a  decentralized  form  was  the  government  of  the 
Grand  Lodge  of  Odd  Fellows,  in  which  the  principal  organ 
of  government  was  the  representative  council  of  delegates 
from  the  local  societies.  During  the  brief  period  of  a  few 
days  that  this  convention  was  in  session  it  exercised  legis- 
lative, judicial,  and  executive  functions.  The  officers  were 
primarily  such  as  were  necessary  for  the  conduct  of  this 
assembly,  and  between  its  meetings  they  had  few  if  any 
duties  to  perform. 

The  early  constitutions  of  two  national  unions  formed 
soon  after  that  of  the  Printers,  the  United  Operative  Mule 
Spinners  of  New  England-  and  the  Grand  Forge  of  the  Sons 
of  Vulcan,^  show  no  trace  of  the  influence  of  the  Odd  Fel- 
lows either  in  wording  or  subject  matter.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  Iron  Molders,  who  early  established  a  powerful 
organization,  copied  the  constitution  of  the  Printers  very 
closely  at  their  first  national  convention  in  1859.  Whole 
sections  are  identical.  Here  and  there  a  word  has  been 
changed  or  a  sentence  left  out.  Sometimes  a  section  has 
been  much  shortened  by  the  omission  of  several  sentences, 
as  in  the  following  article: — 

*  Constitution  and  General  By-Laws  of  the  United  Operative  Mule 
Spinners  of  New  England,  Benevolent  and  Protective  Association. 
Fall  River,  1858. 

*  The  earliest  available  constitution  of  the  National  Forge  of  the 
United  Sons  of  Vulcan,  established  in  i860,  is  that  contained  in  the 
Proceedings,  1869,  in  Vulcan  Record,  vol.  i,  no.  4. 


134 


GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS 


[240 


Constitution   of  National 

Union  of  Iron  Holders 

Adopted  1859* 

Article  I 
Section  i. 

The  National  Union  of  Iron 
Molders  shall  possess  original 
jurisdiction  in  all  matters  per- 
taining to  the  welfare  of  the 
craft  in  the  United  States.  It 
shall  be  the  tribunal  to  which 
all  matters  of  general  impor- 
tance to  the  welfare  of  the 
members  of  the  different  unions 
shall  be  referred,  and  its  de- 
cision thereon  shall  be  final  and 
conclusive.  To  it  shall  belong 
the  power  to  determine  the  cus- 
toms and  usages  in  regard  to 
all  matters  appertaining  to  the 
craft. 


Constitution   of   National 

Typographical   Union 

Adopted  185 1 

Article  I 
Section   i. 

This  body  shall  be  known  by 
the  name  of  the  "  National  Ty- 
pographical Union"  and  shall  be 
acknowledged,  respected  and 
obeyed  as  such  by  each  sub- 
ordinate union  in  the  country. 
It  shall  possess  original  and 
exclusive  jurisdiction  in  all  mat- 
ters pertaining  to  the  fellowship 
of  the  craft  in  the  United  States. 
All  subordinate  unions  shall  as- 
semble under  its  warrant  and 
derive  their  authority  from  it 
enabling  them  to  make  all  neces- 
sary local  laws  for  their  own 
government. 

It  shall  be  the  ultimate  tribunal 
to  which  all  matters  of  general 
importance  to  the  welfare  of  the 
members  of  the  different  unions 
shall  be  referred  and  its  decision 
thereon  shall  be  final  and  con- 
clusive. To  it  shall  belong  the 
power  to  regulate,  fix  and  deter- 
mine the  customs  and  usages  in 
regard  to  all  matters  appertain- 
ing to  the  craft.  It  shall  possess 
inherent  powers  to  establish  sub- 
ordinate unions  who  shall  always 
act  by  virtue  of  a  warrant 
granted  by  authority  of  this 
body. 

Sometimes  a  whole  section  has  been  left  out,  sometimes  a 
new  one  inserted.  The  constitution  of  the  Printers  is  com- 
posed of  ten  articles,  that  of  the  Iron  Molders  of  seven; 
but  the  two  documents  are  in  most  respects  identical.  There 
was  one  significant  difference.  The  Iron  Molders,  unlike 
the  Printers,  made  provision  for  the  exercise  of  executive 
and  judicial  powers  by  a  national  executive  committee  dur- 
ing the  period  between  conventions.  This  committee  was, 
however,  too  large  to  perform  any  real  function.     It  was, 


*  Contained  in  Synopsis  of  the  Proceedings  of  the  National  Con- 
vention of  Iron  Molders,  Philadelphia,  July  5-7,  1859. 


241]     SOURCES    OF    THE    TRADE-UNION    CONSTITUTION        I35 

in  fact,  the  annual  convention  reduced  in  size,  since  each 
local  union  was  required  to  appoint  one  of  its  representatives 
to  the  annual  convention  as  a  member  of  the  committee. 

The  Printers  retained  the  constitution  which  they  bor- 
rowed from  the  Odd  Fellows  practically  unchanged  until 
1885  ;  and  its  main  outHnes  are  still  perceptible  in  the  present 
constitution  of  their  international  union.  Within  four 
years  the  Iron  Holders  had  entirely  revised  their  constitu- 
tion. The  rules  adopted  by  the  convention  of  1863*^  differ 
widely  from  those  of  1859  in  arrangement,  wording,  and 
subject  matter.  The  representative  convention  was  retained 
with  undiminished  powers ;  the  chief  change  was  the  pro- 
vision of  more  adequate  machinery  to  carry  out  executive 
and  judicial  functions  between  the  meetings  of  the  conven- 
tion. With  the  rapid  growth  of  the  activities  of  the  national 
union,  more  and  more  detailed  machinery  has  been  created, 
not  only  for  executive  and  judicial  matters,  but  also  for  the 
legislative  work  of  adopting  amendments  to  the  organic  law. 
The  Bricklayers  and  the  Cigar  Makers,  which  formed 
national  unions  about  the  close  of  the  Civil  War,  felt  the 
influence  of  the  Odd  Fellows  very  slightly,  since  they  appro- 
priated the  constitution  of  the  Iron  Molders  as  revised  in 
1863. 

The  discarding  of  the  Printers'  constitution  by  the  Iron 
Molders  is  probably  to  be  explained  by  fundamental  differ- 
ences in  the  character  of  the  two  trades.  In  iron  molding 
the  product  finds  a  national  market ;  in  the  newspaper  part 
of  the  printing  industry  and  in  much  of  the  jobbing  business 
as  well  the  custom  is  local.  In  the  case  of  the  Printers, 
bargaining  with  employers  has  been  conducted  locally ;  with 
the  Iron  Molders,  when  effective,  it  has  been  national.  The 
constitution  which  was  suitable  to  a  highly  decentralized 
organization  like  that  of  the  Printers  was  unsuitable  to  a 
centralized  one  like  that  of  the  Iron  Molders.  Similarly, 
the  Bricklayers,  engaged  in  an  industry  which  satisfies  local 
needs,  retained  the  constitution  borrowed  from  the  Iron 
Molders  with  few  changes  until  very  recently.    The  Cigar 

*  Contained  in  Proceedings,  1863. 


136  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [242 

Makers,  who  manufacture  a  commodity  which  often  has  a 
wide  territorial  market,  soon  discarded  the  borrowed  con- 
stitution, and  have  not  only  kept  pace  with,  but  to  some 
extent  have  outdistanced  the  Iron  Molders  in  establishing  a 
strongly  centralized  system  of  national  administration  and 
in  the  elaboration  of  methods  of  transacting  business  between 
the  meetings  of  convention. 

The  fraternal  orders  have  also  helped  in  less  distinguish- 
able ways  to  mold  the  government  of  American  trade 
unions.  In  the  proceedings  of  trade  unions  reference  is 
occasionally  made  to  the  system  of  benefits  maintained  by 
fraternal  organizations,  and  the  members  are  urged  to  copy 
the  best  features  of  these  associations.  The  mystery  which 
surrounds  the  secret  society,  the  elaborate  ceremonies,  and 
the  gorgeous  regalia  have  proved  very  attractive  to  the 
American  workmen;  and  these  forms  and  this  secrecy  they 
have  frequently  introduced  into  their  labor  unions.  The 
influence  of  the  secret  orders  is  seen  also  in  the  use  of  names, 
such  as  "  grand  lodge,"  "  subordinate  lodge,"  "  grand 
master,"  "  chaplain,"  "  guide,"  "  warden,"  "  inner  guard," 
"outer  guard,"  and  "marshal." 

During  the  decade  or  more  following  the  Civil  War  secret 
associations  among  workmen  became  the  fashion.  The  best 
known  of  these  was  the  once  powerful  Knights  of  Labor. 
There  were  many  others :  the  Supreme  Mechanical  Sun,  an 
organization  with  an  extensive  ritual  and  numerous  degrees ; 
the  Grand  Eight-Hour  League,  and  others  whose  names 
were  never  given  to  the  public.  Not  only  in  such  general 
associations  of  workingmen,  but  also  in  organizations  of 
particular  trades  did  this  desire  for  secrecy  prevail.  Among 
the  bricklayers  certain  local  unions  in  New  York  and  New 
Jersey  withdrew  from  the  national  association  in  1873  to 
form  the  United  Order  of  American  Bricklayers,  and  one 
reason  given  for  this  secession  was  the  desire  to  form  a 
secret  society.  Some  of  the  railway  unions  formed  during 
this  period  have  continued  to  this  day  to  surround  their 
proceedings  with  the  veil  of  mystery. 

The  local  unions  in  particular  have  borrowed  the  trap- 


243]     SOURCES    OF    THE    TRADE-UNION    CONSTITUTION        1 37 

pings  of  the  secret  societies.  Through  a  peephole  in  the  door 
the  pass  word  is  in  some  unions  solemnly  demanded  of  the 
member  who  wishes  to  enter.  Within,  the  numerous  officers 
are  perhaps  seated  after  the  manner  of  secret  societies  at 
their  stations  on  different  sides  of  the  room.  Extensive 
rituals  and  gorgeous  regalia  are  often  used.  Of  course  the 
policy  of  the  societies  varies  widely  from  the  simplest 
democracy  to  the  most  complicated  formalities ;  but  secrecy, 
regalia,  and  elaborate  ritual  are  certainly  not  uncommon. 

To  conclude,  the  influence  of  one  of  the  large  fraternal 
orders  is  to  be  seen  in  the  constitution  of  two  of  the  earhest 
and  most  powerful  trade  unions  in  the  United  States,  and 
this  influence  they  have  transmitted  to  many  unions  that 
have  imitated  them.  The  form  of  government  borrowed 
from  the  Odd  Fellows,  in  which  the  representative  council 
or  convention  was  practically  the  sole  organ,  broke  down, 
however,  with  the  growth  in  the  powers  of  the  national 
union.  On  this  simple  frame-work,  therefore,  was  superim- 
posed more  elaborate  machinery  to  carry  out  the  several 
functions  of  government  during  the  period  when  convention 
was  not  in  session.  The  influence  of  the  fraternal  orders  is 
also  to  be  seen  in  the  use  of  names  and  of  elaborate  ritual, 
and  in  the  desire  for  secrecy  in  many  organizations. 

The  American  unions  have  profited  greatly  from  the  ex- 
perience of  the  European  organizations,  particularly  the 
English  unions.  Some  American  organizations  were  founded 
by  workmen  who  learned  their  first  lessons  in  trade  union- 
ism in  the  Old  World.  The  Cotton  Mule  Spinners'  Union 
of  New  England  was  formed  by  operatives  who  had  emi- 
grated to  the  mill  towns  of  New  England  from  Lancashire, 
England, — a  very  radical  trade-union  district.  The  princi- 
ples of  unionism  had  been  bred  in  these  men  through  several 
generations,  since  their  forefathers,  the  old  hand  mule 
spinners  of  Lancashire,  had  been  early  pioneers  in  the  for- 
mation of  trade  unions."  The  American  Aliners'  Association 
was  organized  among  the  miners  of  Illinois  and  Missouri 

•Boston  Herald,  October  21,  1875. 


138  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [244 

about  1 861  by  an  old  English  miner  and  a  Welsh  miner. 
Many  other  instances  can  be  cited. 

The  American  associations  undoubtedly  devoted  consider- 
able study  to  the  government  and  policies  of  the  unions  in 
Europe.  In  1864  the  president  of  the  Iron  Holders'  Union 
suggested  that  an  agent  of  the  association  be  sent  abroad  to 
study  the  workings  of  the  trade  unions  and  cooperative 
societies  of  Great  Britain.^  There  is  no  evidence  that  this 
suggestion  was  adopted,  but  comparative  studies  of  the 
features  of  American  and  English  trade  unions  and  excerpts 
from  the  reports  of  the  English  society  of  iron  molders  and 
notes  of  its  activities  appeared  from  time  to  time  in  the 
official  journal  of  the  organization. 

The  soft  stone  cutters,  who,  after  the  printers,  were 
among  the  first  to  form  a  national  union  in  the  United  States, 
are  said  to  have  borrowed  their  constitution  from  the  soft 
stone  cutters'  union  of  England.  The  method  so  common 
among  English  unions  of  adopting  amendments  to  the  rules 
by  the  initiative  and  referendum  was  used  by  this  early 
association  of  stone  cutters.  That  is,  any  amendment  initi- 
ated or  proposed  by  one  local  union  and  seconded  by  a  suffi- 
cient number  of  others  was  referred  to  the  members  of  the 
subordinate  unions  for  adoption  or  rejection.  The  govern- 
ing branch,  another  governmental  feature  of  many  English 
unions,  was  used  by  the  American  stone  cutters.  Under 
this  system  a  certain  town  is  chosen  by  the  representative 
convention  or  by  vote  of  all  the  members  as  headquarters  of 
the  federal  organization.  The  union  or  unions  in  the  place 
so  chosen  are  allowed  to  elect  all  or  most  of  the  executive 
officers  of  the  national  association.®  The  early  organization 
of  soft  stone  cutters  apparently  went  to  pieces,  and  the  con- 
stitution of  the  present  Journeymen  Stone  Cutters'  Associa- 
tion of  North  America  shows  no  trace  of  the  English 
influence. 

The  Granite  Cutters  copied  the  constitution  of  the  early 

^  Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings,  1864. 
'  Circular  of  the  Journeymen  Stone  Cutters'  Association  of  the 
United  States  and  Canada  for  April  and  May,  1858. 


245]      SOURCES    OF    THE    TRADE-UNION    CONSTITUTION        1 39 

organization  of  soft  stone  cutters  at  their  first  national  con- 
vention in  1877,®  and  their  form  of  government  is  still  very 
similar  to  that  of  the  English  unions.  They  have  held  no 
representative  convention  since  1880,  but  adopt  all  amend- 
ments to  the  constitution  by  vote  of  the  members.  Every 
five  years  the  headquarters  of  the  organization  is  chosen  by 
popular  vote,  and  the  local  unions  at  headquarters  select  all 
the  officers  and  members  of  the  executive  board  except  the 
secretary-treasurer. 

The  members  of  the  Cigar  Makers'  International  Union 
of  America,  a  very  efficient  organization  which  has  been 
widely  imitated,  have  been  close  students  of  the  English 
unions.  Correspondence  between  the  officials  of  the  English 
and  the  American  societies  of  cigar  makers  was  begun  in 
1871,  broken  off,  and  resumed  in  1876.  Letters  from  the 
secretary  of  the  Cigar  Makers'  Mutual  Association  of  Eng- 
land appeared  in  the  trade  journal  of  the  American  union 
about  1876.^''  In  them  the  writer  made  many  practical  sug- 
gestions based  on  the  experiences  of  his  own  organization. 
He  suggested,  for  example,  the  strict  enforcement  of  the 
principle  of  the  closed  shop,  and  urged  the  American  union 
not  to  fight  against  the  introduction  of  machinery  and  not  to 
discriminate  against  women  workers.  He  sent  a  copy  of 
the  rules  of  the  English  society  to  the  officials  of  the  Amer- 
ican union.  Naturally,  therefore,  when  about  1877  and  1878 
the  American  Union  of  Cigar  Makers  entered  on  a  period  of 
growth  and  reorganization,  it  turned  for  guidance  to  the 
experience  of  the  English  unions. 

Those  directing  the  affairs  of  the  Cigar  Makers  were 
anxious  to  build  up  a  strongly  centralized  organization,  and 
the  English  unions  were  of  such  a  character.  On  a  govern- 
ment still  reflecting  somewhat  the  influence  of  the  Odd  Fel- 
lows from  its  imitation  of  the  Iron  Molders'  constitution 
were  therefore  superimposed  various  carefully  selected  fea- 
tures of  the  more  progressive  English  unions.^^     The  local 

•  Granite  Cutters'  Journal,  April,  1877,  p.  i. 

*'  For  example,  see  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  March,  April, 
December,  1876. 
"  Thus  see  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  August,  1879. 


140  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [246 

unions  have  been  bound  in  closer  allegiance  to  the  federal 
association  by  paying,  as  do  the  Amalgamated  Society  of 
Engineers,  the  Amalgamated  Society  of  Carpenters,  and 
other  English  unions,  sick,  death,  out-of-work,  and  strike 
benefits  from  national  funds.  The  chief  features  in  the 
financial  system  of  the  English  union — the  accumulation  of 
revenue  by  periodical  collection  of  dues  rather  than  by 
special  assessments,  the  distribution  of  national  funds  among 
the  treasuries  of  the  local  societies  rather  than  its  accumula- 
tion in  a  single  central  treasury,  and  national  control  over 
tlie  income  and  expenditure  of  the  local  union — have  all 
been  copied.  The  Cigar  Makers,  like  the  Granite  Cutters, 
have  practically  ceased  to  hold  conventions,  and  refer  all 
important  questions  to  a  vote  of  the  members. 

The  features  of  the  English  societies  have,  however,  been 
only  in  a  limited  way  engrafted  on  the  structure  of  the 
American  unions.  A  number  of  associations  make  no  use 
of  the  referendum,  and  very  few  have  entirely  ceased  to 
hold  conventions.  The  majority  have  retained  the  repre- 
sentative assembly,  but  during  the  interval  between  its 
sessions  refer  certain  limited  kinds  of  questions  to  popular 
vote.  Because  the  members  of  the  union  in  each  section  of 
the  country  demand  representation  on  the  board  of  manage- 
ment, the  system  of  the  governing  branch  has  been  distinctly 
unpopular  in  American  organizations.  It  has  been  adopted 
by  very  few  trades,  not  even  by  a  trade  like  that  of  the  cigar 
makers,  which  has  felt  so  strongly  the  influence  of  the  Eng- 
lish societies.  The  American  unions  are  much  more  decen- 
tralized. The  conditions  of  employment  are  usually  regu- 
lated by  the  local  societies,  which  jealously  oppose  any 
increase  in  the  functions  of  the  federal  organizations.  The 
English  associations  have  the  advantage  of  compactness, 
their  membership  being  included  within  a  territory  not 
larger  than  one  of  the  average  American  States.  Cost  of 
living,  methods  of  production,  transportation  facilities,  and 
other  conditions  vary  slightly,  and  uniformity  can  be  ob- 
tained with   comparative  ease.     On  the  other   hand,   the 


247]     SOURCES    OF    THE    TRADE-UNION    CONSTITUTION         I4I 

American  unions  have  extended  their  jurisdiction  over  an 
economically  diversified  territory  including  not  merely  the 
United  States,  but  also  Canada  and  Mexico,  and  within  the 
last  few  years  even  the  West  Indies  and  the  far  distant 
Hawaiian  and  Philippine  Islands. 

The  possible  influence  of  the  American  political  system  is 
too  intangible  to  measure.  It  is  perhaps  to  be  seen  in  the 
respect  often  shown  for  the  representative  form  of  govern- 
ment, and  in  the  attempts  to  make  the  national  union  a 
federation  of  state  associations,^^  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the 
natural  territorial  divisions  of  the  union,  as  determined  by 
competitive  conditions,  seldom  correspond  with  the  States. 
Trade  unionists  also  make  at  times  stilted  comparisons  be- 
tween the  American  judicial  system  and  their  own  methods  of 
appeal  from  a  lower  to  a  higher  authority.  Specific  imita- 
tion of  the  American  political  system  is,  however,  very  diffi- 
cult to  discover. 

Because  the  American  unions  have  borrowed  so  freely 
from  one  another,  the  influences  felt  by  only  a  few  have 
been  extended  quickly  to  the  others.  The  Granite  Cutters 
and  the  Cigar  Makers  have  made  the  methods  of  the  English 
unions  familiar  to  American  workmen  who  have  had  no 
direct  knowledge  of  these  foreign  societies.  Through  the 
Printers  and  the  Cigar  Makers  the  influence  of  the  Odd  Fel- 
lows has  been  communicated  to  other  trades.  Certain 
notably  strong  and  efficient  unions  have  been  especial  favor- 
ites of  the  imitators.  The  Operative  Potters  at  their  first 
national  convention  borrowed  very  largely  from  the  con- 
stitution, by-laws,  and  ritual  of  the  American  Flint  Glass 
Workers  because,  it  was  said,  they  wished  to  "  pattern  after 
one  of  the  most  successful  labor  organizations  of  the  day." 
The  government  and  policies  of  the  Cigar  Makers  have 
been  widely  imitated.  The  Piano  and  Organ  Workers  have, 
with  a  few  minor  changes,  practically  adopted  their  entire 
constitution.    The  rules  for  the  holding  of  popular  elections 

"  See,  for  example,  Barnett,  The  Printers,  p.  27. 


142  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [248 

observed  in  the  Metal  Polishers'  International  Union  are 
practically  identical  with  those  of  the  Cigar  Makers,  save 
for  the  elimination  of  several  unimportant  sections.  Even 
the  long  established  and  powerful  Iron  Molders'  Union  has 
borrowed  particular  features  of  the  Cigar  Makers'  elaborate 
system  of  financial  administration. 

Frequently  there  is  great  similarity  between  the  constitu- 
tions of  workers  in  kindred  trades  or  industries,  the  younger 
unions  borrowing  from  the  older  ones.  The  Tobacco  Work- 
ers have  imitated  very  closely  the  constitution  of  the  Cigar 
Makers,  and  the  constitutions  of  the  various  unions  of  rail- 
way employees  are  markedly  similar.  The  Quarry  Workers 
and  the  Paving  Cutters  have  copied  very  closely  the  struc- 
ture of  the  Granite  Cutters,  and  the  Hod  Carriers  that  of 
the  Bricklayers.  The  form  of  government  in  American 
trade  unions  is  not,  however,  of  a  uniform  pattern.  On  the 
contrary,  as  we  shall  see  throughout  this  study,  the  widest 
variety  exists.  The  American  trade  unionists  are  also  not 
mere  imitators  of  others.  Often  the  machinery  of  govern- 
ment is  a  patchwork  of  pieces  selected  from  various  sources, 
but  these  pieces  have  been  reshaped,  and  put  together  into 
new  combinations  to  suit  needs.  Each  association  has  also 
originated  certain  devices  of  its  own. 

Of  course,  the  governmental  efficiency  of  a  union  is  largely 
determined  by  the  intelligence  and  self  control  of  its  mem- 
bers. Even  if  two  unions  have  almost  identical  rules,  the 
administration  of  these  rules  may  be  vastly  different.  In 
one  trade,  where  perhaps  brute  strength  rather  than  skill 
is  required,  the  machinery  of  government  may  run  very 
badly.  The  members  give  little  obedience  to  the  national 
officers ;  the  officers  in  turn  exercise  the  widest  discretion  in 
interpreting  the  rules,  and  even  break  them  in  emergency. 
The  members  are  whimsical  in  punishing  for  violations  of 
the  rules,  now  expelling  and  hounding  a  supposed  traitor  to 
the  cause  of  unionism,  now  dealing  leniently  with  a  man 
chronically  careless  in  his  observance  of  his  financial  and 
other  obligations.     In  the  meetings  a  few  fire-eaters  are 


249]     SOURCES    OF    THE    TRADE-UNION    CONSTITUTION         1 43 

sometimes  allowed  to  override  the  counsels  of  the  thought- 
ful. Wire-pulling  and  boss  control  at  times  prevail.  In 
another  association  the  same  machinery  of  government  may 
run  smoothly.  The  officers  are  honest  and  efficient ;  there 
is  a  wholesome  respect  for  the  rules ;  and  decisions  are 
reached  after  careful  and  deliberate  judgment.  Strikes  in 
one  trade  are  conducted  in  a  quiet,  business-like  way, — so 
quiet  and  "  tame,"  in  fact,  that  they  are  uninteresting,  and 
hence  receive  scant  notice  in  out-of-the-way  corners  of  the 
daily  newspapers.  Strikes  in  the  other  trade  are  marked 
by  spectacular  rowdyism  and  mismanagement,  and,  being 
excellent  "  story,"  figure  in  the  public  press  as  examples  of 
the  failure  of  trade  unionism. 

Another  factor  in  trade-union  development,  potent,  yet 
difficult  to  measure,  is  that  of  leadership.  One  wonders  how 
far  efficient  leadership  is  responsible  for  the  strong  business- 
like organization  which  the  Cigar  Makers,  a  body  of  com- 
paratively unskilled  workers,  have  been  able  to  build  up 
despite  the  introduction  of  machinery  and  the  formation  of 
the  tobacco  trust.  Certainly,  at  the  most  crucial  and  forma- 
tive period  of  its  history,  the  influence  of  two  leaders  is 
apparent.  One.  the  president  of  the  union,  with  the  methods 
of  the  student,  for  fourteen  years  sought  in  many  quarters 
at  home  and  abroad  the  means  to  strengthen  his  organiza- 
tion. At  the  conventions  of  the  union  and  in  the  pages 
of  its  official  journal  he  put  forth  again  and  again  the  argu- 
ments in  favor  of  the  policies  which  he  advocated,  and  at 
last  succeeded  in  convincing  even  the  most  conservative. 
At  all  meetings  of  convention  there  was  also  to  be  found  the 
present  head  of  the  American  Federation  of  Labor,  formerly 
a  cigar  maker,  ever  progressive  and  likewise  ever  aggressive 
and  belligerent.  The  Iron  Molders  still  revere  the  memory 
of  William  H.  Silvis,  one  of  their  first  presidents,  who  was 
so  influential  in  determining  the  form  of  the  organization 
during  its  early  and  plastic  stage.  The  Miners  have  been 
fortunate  in  their  leaders,  from  Daniel  Weaver  and  John 
Siney,  whose  names  are  associated  with  the  early  ephemeral 


144  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [2  50 

national  unions  of  the  trade,  to  John  Mitchell,  during  whose 
administration  the  loosely  knit  federation  of  district  associa- 
tions known  as  the  United  Mine  Workers  has  been  able  to 
exercise  really  important  functions.  In  most  trades  there 
can  be  found  leaders  who  have  left  some  mark  of  their 
influence  on  the  structure  and  activities  of  their  associations. 


CHAPTER  VIII 
THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  THE  MINOR  BODIES 

The  machinery  of  government  of  the  shop  meeting  has 
always  been  simple  and  informal.  Usually  some  one  has 
been  elected  to  preside  at  meetings  held  within  the  industrial 
establishment,  and  when  the  need  has  arisen,  special  com- 
mittees have  been  created  to  lay  the  demands  of  the  journey- 
men before  the  employer.  At  a  very  early  date  the  journey- 
men in  the  printing  shops  of  England  and  America  were 
organized  into  "  chapels."  The  chapel  held  meetings  when- 
ever a  disagreement  arose  with  the  employer  or  between 
the  journeymen  themselves,  and  it  was  presided  over  by  the 
so-called  "  father  of  the  chapel." 

Meetings  held  within  the  factory  itself  are  so  very  incon- 
venient that  they  are  rapidly  disappearing,  and  all  functions 
are  being  delegated  to  some  official  or  to  a  small  committee. 
The  constitution  of  the  New  York  Typographical  Society 
for  1833  provided  that  "  if  the  majority  in  large  offices  de- 
cide to  delegate  their  power  to  chapels,  consisting  of  five, 
seven  or  nine  members,  of  which  the  father  to  be  always 
one,  it  shall  be  competent  for  them  to  do  so."  Sometimes, 
because  of  objections  from  employers,  shop  meetings  have 
been  absolutely  forbidden.  For  example,  the  hat  manufac- 
turers of  Danbury,  Connecticut,  objected  to  the  interrup- 
tions to  work  caused  by  the  frequent  "shop  calls"  of  their 
employees.  They  declared  that  while  such  meetings  were 
being  held,  the  fires  went  out  and  the  felt  in  process  of 
preparation  was  ruined.  In  1885  the  manufacturers  ob- 
tained from  the  local  union  an  agreement  by  which  "  shop 
calls  "  were  prohibited.  Usually  the  workmen  in  each  estab- 
lishment elect  a  small  committee  known  as  the  shop  or  mill 
committee.  To  this  committee  any  member  or  members 
may  bring  a  grievance.  The  committee,  if  it  deems  neces- 
10  14s 


146  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [252 

sary,  endeavors  to  adjust  the  matter  with  the  employer,  and 
failing  to  do  so,  submits  the  difficulty  to  the  local  union.  In 
each  establishment  there  is  also  a  shop  official  known  among 
the  Printers  as  the  father  of  the  chapel,  among  the  Cigar 
Makers  as  the  shop  collector,  and  in  many  trades  as  the  shop 
steward.  Sometimes  he  is  elected  by  the  local  union,  some- 
times by  his  fellow-workmen  in  the  same  factory.  The  shop 
steward  collects  the  dues  of  members.  In  closed  or  union 
shops  he  keeps  watch  that  only  those  in  good  standing  with 
the  society  are  permitted  to  work.  He  reports  to  the  local 
union  the  number  of  unfilled  positions  in  the  factory.  He 
detects  and  reports  any  deviation  from  the  standard  scale  of 
wages,  hours,  and  other  working  conditions  established  by 
the  society.  When  his  organization  affixes  a  label  to  union- 
made  goods,  he  often  has  charge  of  distributing  and  attach- 
ing these  labels  at  the  factory. 

The  government  of  the  local  union  is  essentially  govern- 
ment by  mass-meeting.  The  whole  body  of  members, 
assembling  once  each  month,  once  each  fortnight,  or  oftener, 
is  the  final  authority  for  the  transaction  of  all  business, — 
legislative,  executive,  and  judicial.  The  general  meeting 
may  adopt  amendments  to  the  by-laws,  may  suspend  or 
expel  a  member,  may  order  the  purchase  of  an  account  book, 
or  may  declare  a  strike. 

Usually  the  meetings  of  the  local  union  are  held  in  some 
convenient  hall.  Sometimes  several  local  unions  join 
together  to  hire  or  purchase  a  building  where  each  may  have 
its  office  and  meeting  room.  Often  the  cheapest  and  most 
convenient  place  is  a  room  over  a  store  or  perhaps  over  a 
saloon.  The  character  of  these  meeting  halls  varies  widely. 
Some  are  forlornly  barren,  uncarpeted,  containing  only  a 
decrepit  table  and  formidable  rows  of  long  dilapidated 
benches.  Others  are  cozy  and  attractive.  In  one  such  room 
visited,  for  example,  the  floor  was  covered  with  rugs,  and 
the  chairs  were  not  arranged  in  formal  rows,  but  were  dis- 
posed irregularly  along  the  sides  of  the  room.  During  the 
meetings  the  several  officers  were  stationed  in  various  parts 


253]  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    MINOR    BODIES  I47 

of  the  room  with  something  of  the  ceremony  of  fraternal 
orders.  They  sat  upon  raised  platforms,  before  small  round 
column-like  tables  painted  in  black  and  cream  and  gold. 
Cases  filled  with  gay  regalia  and  shelves  lined  with  books 
and  periodicals  added  to  the  attractiveness  of  the  room. 

In  the  trade  union  the  faults  of  government  by  mass- 
meeting  are  the  ones  common  to  all  such  assemblies.  One 
difficulty  is  to  secure  regular  attendance  of  members.  Often 
in  small  societies  a  quorum  can  be  secured  with  difficulty. 
Some  local  unions  levy  fines  for  inexcusable  absences,  or  even 
deprive  a  member  of  the  card  which  enables  him  to  work  at 
his  trade  with  other  unionists.  Usually  such  measures  are 
effective,  though  a  few  instances  have  been  found  where 
the  fines  are  so  frequent  that  they  have  become  a  regular 
source  of  revenue,  and  in  consequence  the  weekly  dues  have 
been  reduced  in  amount.  Occasionally,  difficulties  result 
from  revolts  of  the  minority,  who,  disgruntled  perhaps 
because  a  pet  scheme  has  been  rejected,  revenge  themselves 
by  bitter  denunciation,  by  filibustering,  or  by  constantly 
stirring  up  factional  feeling  which  may  ultimately  disrupt 
the  union.  The  thoughtful  and  conservative  allow  them- 
selves to  be  overawed  into  declaring  unwise  strikes  by  the 
taunt  of  cowardice  from  the  "  red-hot  fire-eaters."  Windy 
orators  waste  the  time  of  the  meetings  in  rambling,  pointless 
discussion. 

The  mass-meeting  is  a  clumsy  mechanism  to  use  for  ren- 
dering judicial  decisions  and  for  the  transaction  of  execu- 
tive business,  and  matters  are  continually  arising  which 
demand  immediate  consideration  during  the  period  between 
the  regular  meetings.  The  general  meeting  has  been  very 
reluctant  to  delegate  any  of  its  powers;  but  of  necessity 
various  boards  and  committees  have  gradually  been  created, 
^lany  of  these  committees  are  appointed  for  a  particular 
purpose,  and  are  discharged  when  that  purpose  has  been 
attained.  Nevertheless,  certain  standing  committees  have 
also  emerged,  the  most  important  of  which  is  the  executive 
committee.  This  board  exercises  a  wide  though  var^'ing 
number  of  specially  delegated  powers,  but  any  of  its  deci- 


148  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [254 

sions  may  be  overruled  by  the  general  meeting.^  The  execu- 
tive board  appears  at  a  comparatively  late  date  in  the  history 
of  the  local  union.  Such  a  board  existed  in  the  Philadelphia 
Typographical  Society  in  1802  and  in  the  New  York  society 
of  the  same  trade  as  early  as  1809;  it  was  not  used,  how- 
ever, by  the  Washington  association  of  printers  in  1821,^  or 
by  the  Baltimore  society  in  1833.^  Since  about  1840  it  has 
become  a  useful  feature  of  government  in  local  unions  of 
printers ;  in  other  trades  it  did  not  appear  until  a  much  later 
date.  The  local  unions  of  such  early  organized  trades  as 
hat  making,  stone  cutting,  and  bricklaying,  for  example,  had 
no  executive  boards  as  late  as  the  decade  between  1880  and 
1890.  Some  international  unions  have  adopted  rules  requir- 
ing the  subordinate  branches  to  create  such  executive  com- 
mittees in  order  to  prevent  delay  in  the  transaction  of  inter- 
national business  during  the  frequently  long  interval  between 
the  meetings  of  the  local  union.*  At  the  present  day  most 
local  societies  have  such  executive  boards,  though  not  even 
yet  are  they  to  be  found  in  some  trades. 

Another  important  committee  of  the  local  union  is  the 
judiciary  or  grievance  committee,  which  considers  charges. 
Sometimes  a  special  committee  is  created  when  a  member 
is  brought  to  trial.  Occasionally  the  executive  board  is 
vested  with  this  judicial  authority,  but  more  frequently  a 
special  standing  committee  exists  for  this  purpose.  Another 
standing  committee  is  the  membership  committee ;  another  is 

*  In  the  earliest  extant  constitution  of  an  American  local  trade 
union,  that  of  the  Philadelphia  Typographical  Society  for  1802, 
power  to  transact  all  business  not  especially  delegated  to  the  gen- 
eral meeting  was  vested  in  a  board  of  directors,  which  admitted  and 
expelled  members,  paid  benefits,  and  adopted  regulations  of  work. 
Its  decisions  were  reported  to  the  general  meeting,  but  could  not 
be  reversed  by  that  body.  The  structure  of  the  Philadelphia  Typo- 
graphical Society  was  exceptional.  The  constitution  of  this  asso- 
ciation is  reprinted  in  the  Bulletin  of  the  Bureau  of  Labor,  no.  61, 
November,  1905. 

^  Constitution  of  the  Columbia  Typographical  Society  of  Wash- 
ington, 1821. 

'  Constitution  of  the  New  York  Typographical  Society,  1833. 

*The  Cigar  Makers  made  provision  for  the  establishment  of  such 
boards  as  early  as  1879  (Constitution,  adopted  1879,  art.  xvi,  sec.  i, 
in  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  September,  1879,  p.  3). 


2  55]  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    MINOR    BODIES  1 49 

the  finance  committee,  one  of  whose  most  important  duties 
is  to  audit  the  accounts  of  the  officers  having  charge  of 
the  funds. 

The  officers  of  the  local  union  are  commonly  a  president, 
who  is  chairman  at  meetings  of  the  society,  a  vice-president, 
a  recording  secretary,  a  treasurer,  a  corresponding  secretary, 
and  frequently  also  a  financial  secretary  who  keeps  account 
of  receipts  and  expenditures.  Sometimes  the  recording 
secretary  acts  as  corresponding  or  as  financial  secretary ; 
sometimes  the  officers  of  corresponding  secretary  and  finan- 
cial secretary  are  combined.  Usually  the  local  officers  are 
unpaid,  or  are  paid  a  nominal  sum.  They  work  at  their 
trade,  and  perform  their  official  duties  during  spare  time. 
The  duties  of  the  local  and  financial  secretary  are  exception- 
ally onerous  in  unions  which,  like  the  Cigar  Makers,  main- 
tain a  variety  of  benefits,  and  many  of  the  larger  local  unions 
in  such  trades  pay  him  a  salary.  The  paid  financial  secretary 
devotes  his  entire  time  to  the  union,  and  receives  usually  the 
rate  of  wages  prevailing  in  the  trade.  Not  only  does  he 
keep  the  financial  accounts,  but  he  also  performs  in  many 
instances  the  work  of  corresponding  secretary,  recording 
secretary,  and  treasurer. 

The  other  paid  official  in  the  local  union  is  the  walking 
delegate  or,  as  the  trade  unionists  prefer  to  call  him,  the 
business  agent.  The  business  agent  adjusts  disputes  between 
employers  and  their  workmen,  and  thus  replaces  the  com- 
mittees of  the  shops  and  local  union  w^hich  w^ould  otherwise 
perform  this  service.  The  policy  of  bargaining  with  employ- 
ers through  unpaid  officials  or  committees  has  certain  dis- 
advantages. In  the  first  place,  the  employers  frequently 
look  upon  the  members  of  delegations  from  their  workmen 
as  agitators  seeking  to  stir  up  trouble,  and  sometimes  dis- 
charge them  at  the  earliest  opportunity.  Moreover,  efficient 
bargaining  with  an  employer  requires  shrewdness,  diplomacy, 
and  considerable  knowledge  of  cost  and  methods  of  produc- 
tion in  competing  factories.  Gradually  the  salaried  official 
attains  knowledge  concerning  conditions  in  the  industry  and 
also  some  skill  in  bargaining.    'At  the  same  time  he  is  not 


150  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [256 

restrained  in  upholding  the  rights  of  his  fellow-workmen  by 
the  fear  of  being  discharged  by  the  employer. 

The  business  agent  performs  also  duties  which  in  other 
unions  are  left  to  the  shop  steward.  Like  that  official,  he 
collects  dues,  detects  and  calls  attention  to  violations  of  trade 
agreements,  and  prevents  the  employment  of  non-society 
journeymen  in  union  shops.  Another  of  his  functions  is  to 
serve  as  the  head  of  an  employment  agency.  Employers  who 
need  additional  journeymen  apply  to  him  in  the  early  morn- 
ing hours  before  he  starts  on  his  round  of  visits  from  one 
establishment  to  another,  and  he  dispatches  such  men  as  are 
out  of  work  to  fill  the  vacant  places.  As  an  organizer  he 
seeks  to  persuade  workmen  to  join  the  union.  Frequently 
he  acts  as  financial  secretary.  Sometimes  when  the  union 
pays  sick  benefits  he  visits  sick  members  to  determine  their 
eligibility  to  receive  such  benefits.^ 

The  business  agent  is  a  very  recent  development  in  the 
government  of  the  local  trade  union.  The  first  walking  dele- 
gate is  reported  to  have  been  James  Lynch,  who  was  elected 
to  the  office  by  the  carpenters'  union  of  New  York  in  1883  f 
but  walking  delegates  were  also  maintained  by  the  Brick- 
layers of  New  York  in  1883  and  perhaps  earlier.'^  Probably 
a  large  majority  of  the  local  unions  do  not  employ  business 
agents.  Of  twelve  hundred  and  twenty-five  local  unions  in 
Massachusetts  from  whom  information  was  obtained  in  a 
recent  investigation  not  more  than  thirty-eight  per  cent  were 
represented  by  business  agents.^  Only  local  unions  with  a 
large  membership  can  afford  the  expense  of  maintaining  a 
business  agent.  Local  unions  of  the  building  trades  consti- 
tute perhaps  more  than  half  of  the  societies  maintaining 
business  agents;  certainly  such  was  found  by  the  above 
inquiry  to  be  the  condition  in  Massachusetts.  The  business 
agent  is  declared  to  be  more  needed  in  the  building  trades 

°A  good  description  of  the  work  of  the  walking  delegate  is  con- 
tained in  The  Tailor,  April,  1893,  p.  6. 

*  Century  Magazine,  December,  1903,  p.  298. 
^  Proceedings,  1883. 

*  Thirty-ninth  Annual  Report  of  the  Statistics  of  Labor  for  1908 
of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts. 


257]  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    MINOR    BODIES  I5I 

than  in  others  because  the  incessant  shifting  of  the  workers 
from  one  building  to  another  renders  the  maintenance  of  any- 
kind  of  shop  organization  difficult.  Members  of  the  build- 
ing trades  unions  are  required  by  their  organizations  to 
elect  a  shop  steward  as  soon  as  they  are  put  to  work  on  the 
construction  of  a  building,  but  often  such  a  group  of  work- 
ers are  too  little  acquainted  with  one  another  to  know  who 
is  the  best  man  for  the  position.  In  addition  to  this,  the 
steward  who  is  selected  has  scarcely  time  enough  to  familiar- 
ize himself  with  his  duties  or  to  develop  a  sense  of  respon- 
sibility for  performing  them. 

Hated  by  employers,  envied  and  often  criticised  by  his 
fellows-unionists,  the  position  of  the  business  agent  is  not 
always  a  pleasant  one.  Such  is  the  common  complaint  of 
the  business  agents  with  whom  the  writer  has  talked.  "  I 
found  the  position  anything  but  pleasant,"  said  James  Lynch, 
the  early  walking  delegate  mentioned  above.  "  I  was  at 
once  plunged  into  continual  war.  My  presence  on  a  job  was 
an  irritation  to  the  employer  as  well  as  to  the  non-union  men 
and  not  infrequently  some  of  the  union  men  envied  me, 
little  knowing  the  sorrows  of  my  lot."  Usually  the  business 
agent  receives  the  same  salary  as  he  would  if  he  were  work- 
ing at  his  trade.  His  expenses  are  increased,  however,  be- 
cause of  his  office.  At  the  same  time  he  is  vested  with  great 
authority  and  is  subjected  to  dangerous  temptation.  From 
accepting  bribes  to  levying  blackmail  was  the  short  step 
which  put  prominent  business  agents  of  the  New  York 
building  trades  unions  in  Sing  Sing  Prison  a  few  years  ago. 
The  union  is  frequently  not  blameless.  The  statement  has 
been  made  repeatedly,  though  with  what  truth  it  is  difficult 
to  say,  that  certain  unions  have  condoned  the  blackmailing 
of  employers  by  shrewd  and  energetic  agents  who  have  been 
successful  in  securing  good  wages  for  the  trade. 

One  serious  mistake  has  been  to  vest  the  business  agent 
with  power  to  call  a  strike,  for  this  power  has  been  the  club 
which  he  has  used  to  extort  money  from  the  employers.  The 
policy  of  permitting  the  business  agent  to  declare  a  strike  has 
prevailed  particularly  in  the  building  trades.    In  those  trades 


152  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [258 

he  may  order  the  workmen  to  leave  the  building  immediately 
whenever  he  finds  a  non-union  man  at  work  or  discovers 
some  other  violation  of  the  agreement  by  the  employer. 
As  a  consequence,  the  most  flagrant  cases  of  dishonesty 
among  business  agents  have  occurred  in  the  building  trades. 
These  trades  vest  control  over  strikes  in  such  officials  for 
the  same  reason  that  they  permit  the  men  on  a  building  to 
strike  without  the  consent  of  the  local  union,  namely,  be- 
cause the  frequent  shifting  of  the  men  from  one  building  to 
another  necessitates  prompt  action. 

In  all  the  trades  except  the  building  trades  the  immediate 
control  of  the  business  agent  over  strikes  and  other  matters 
is  very  much  restricted.  Very  seldom  has  he  power  to  call 
a  strike.  To  be  sure,  a  suggestion  from  him  may  lead  the 
men  in  an  industrial  establishment  to  quit  work ;  but,  as  has 
been  pointed  out,  unauthorized  shop  strikes  are  rapidly  dis- 
appearing. Over  the  vote  on  strikes  at  meetings  of  the  local 
unions  he  can  exert  only  a  limited  influence.  Almost  invari- 
ably the  vote  is  a  secret  one,  in  order  that  the  fear  of 
denunciation  by  others  may  not  cause  the  timid  to  vote 
against  their  convictions.  Moreover,  the  local  union  is  refer- 
ring proposed  strikes  to  the  international  union  with  increas- 
ing frequency,  and  the  international  union  does  not  even 
accept  the  report  of  the  business  agent,  but  sends  its  own 
representative  to  investigate  the  cause  of  the  dispute.  Be- 
cause of  his  official  position  and  because  of  his  intimate 
knowledge  of  conditions  about  which  the  other  members  are 
only  vaguely  informed,  the  business  agent,  in  spite  of  all  re- 
strictions on  his  power,  naturally  exercises  great  influence  at 
meetings  of  the  local  unions.  Indeed,  some  of  the  more  able 
among  them  are  said  to  hold  their  unions  in  the  hollow  of 
their  hands.  But  the  domination  of  leaders  is  seemingly 
inevitable  in  trade  unions  as  in  other  organizations.  As  far 
as  rules  can  provide,  the  powers  of  the  business  agent  are 
carefully  restricted  by  requiring  him  to  submit  all  questions 
to  the  local  executive  board  or  to  meetings  of  the  local  union. 

Even  in  the  building  trades  the  influence  of  the  business 
agent  over  strikes  is  declining.    To  be  sure,  after  the  spec- 


2  59]  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    MINOR    BODIES  1 53 

tacular  trials  of  1904  and  1905  the  New  York  local  unions, 
even  those  whose  business  agents  had  been  sent  to  prison 
for  blackmailing,  continued  to  permit  such  officials  to  call 
men  off  a  building.  Nevertheless,  the  Building  Trades 
Alliance  adopted  at  that  time  a  rule  to  the  effect  that  no 
business  agent  could  declare  a  strike  involving  other  trades 
besides  his  own.  Power  to  declare  strikes  involving  several 
of  the  building  trades  was  not  vested  as  formerly  in  the 
joint  board  of  walking  delegates,  but  in  a  board  or  council 
especially  created  for  the  purpose  on  which  each  of  the 
unions  belonging  to  the  alliance  was  represented.  At  the 
same  time,  by  an  agreement  between  the  Building  Trades 
Employers'  Association  and  their  workmen,  no  strike  can 
be  declared  by  joint  action  of  all  local  unions,  by  a  single 
local  union,  by  a  business  agent,  or  by  a  group  of  men  on 
a  building  until  the  matter  in  dispute  has  been  referred  to 
an  arbitration  board  consisting  of  two  delegates  from  each 
division  of  the  Employers'  Association  and  two  from  each 
local  union  that  is  a  party  to  the  agreement.  A  business 
agent,  therefore,  could  order  to  quit  work  only  members  of 
his  own  trade  employed  by  an  independent  contractor  not  a 
party  to  the  above  agreement. 

Grave  defects  in  the  government  of  the  local  union  have 
resulted  from  the  administrative  inexperience  of  its  mem- 
bers. Students  of  trade-union  development  must  not  forget 
that  the  early  unionist  v^as  ordinarily  without  parliamentary 
or  executive  experience.  Unless  he  had  dabbled  in  ward  or 
county  politics,  or  had  served  as  delegate  to  some  party 
convention,  he  had  little  practical  or  even  theoretical  know- 
ledge of  the  machinery  of  government.  If  one  half  of  the 
reminiscences  to  be  heard  or  read  are  true,  conditions  in  the 
newly  organized  local  union  were  disheartening. 

Such  executive  inexperience  has  been  clearly  apparent, 
for  example,  in  the  methods  of  financial  administration. 
Treasurers  and  financial  secretaries  frequently  defalcated. 
In  the  early  trade  journals  there  appeared  such  notices  as 

the  following:   "Be  it  known  that ,  late 

financial  secretary  of  Union  No.  —  has  absconded  and  taken 


154  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [260 

$9  and  over  of  assessments  and  dues  belonging  to  the  union. 
Other  unions  look  out  for  him,  for  he  is  a  '  beat '  and  a  very- 
smooth  talker.""  Often  the  funds  so  misappropriated  were 
small  in  amount,  frequently  not  exceeding  thirty  or  forty 
dollars.  One  cause  of  such  delinquency  has  been  the  lack  of 
care  or  discrimination  exercised  in  the  selection  of  men  to 
fill  financial  positions.  Incompetents,  "  good  fellows,"  and 
total  strangers  of  whose  past  nothing  was  known  have  been 
elected.  For  example,  on  one  occasion  a  local  union  chose 
as  financial  secretary  a  man  who  had  been  in  town  only  a 
few  weeks  prior  to  his  election.  His  record  was  by  no 
means  clear,  the  union  of  the  locality  he  had  just  left  having 
suspended  him  for  non-payment  of  dues,  but  on  application 
to  the  local  union  in  his  new  place  of  residence  he  was 
reinstated  on  his  promise  to  pay  the  arrearage.  When  the 
office  of  financial  secretary  fell  vacant,  he  was  elected  to  the 
position.  A  few  weeks  later  he  absconded  with  about  forty 
dollars  of  the  society's  funds.^° 

Another  important  cause  of  defalcation  has  been  the 
neglect  of  the  local  union  to  take  proper  precautions  for  the 
protection  of  the  funds.  Frequently  the  financial  officers 
have  not  been  required  to  give  bond.  The  financial  secre- 
tary has  been  allowed  to  accumulate  dues  in  his  own  hands 
without  turning  them  over  to  the  treasurer.  Many  socie- 
ties have  failed  to  elect  trustees,  or  such  trustees,  when 
elected,  have  neglected  to  require  that  the  financial  officers 
turn  over  all  funds  above  a  certain  amount  for  deposit  or 
investment.  Some  local  unions  have  even  failed  to  elect 
auditing  committees  to  examine  the  books  and  accounts  of 
the  treasurer  and  financial  secretary  and  to  report  as  to 
their  correctness.  The  financial  officers  have  been  permitted 
to  report  to  the  general  meeting,  where  garbled  and  false 
statements  could  be  made  without  fear  of  detection.  On 
the  other  hand,  since  these  societies  were  unincorporated, 
and  since  in  many  cases  the  officers  were  paid  no  salaries, 
legal  prosecution  has  been  difficult.     Moreover,  with  mis- 

'  Cigar  Makers'  Oflficial  Journal,  March,  1876,  p.  3. 
'"Ibid.,  March,  1881,  p.  5. 


26 1 ]  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    MINOR    BODIES  I  55 

placed  sympathy,  such  societies  have  frequently  not  at- 
tempted to  bring  the  absconding  officers  to  trial.  Sometimes 
they  have  even  allowed  those  who  have  promised  to  refund 
the  amount  embezzled  to  maintain  their  membership  in  the 
union.  Gradually,  however,  the  older  local  unions  have 
evolved  better  methods  of  administering  financial  and  other 
business.  Some  international  organizations  have  adopted 
rigid  rules  for  the  guidance  of  local  unions,  and  a  few  have 
created  special  international  officers  who  travel  from  one 
society  to  another  to  see  that  these  rules  are  enforced. 

In  the  district  unions  the  representative  assembly  per- 
forms the  functions  of  the  general  mass-meeting  in  the  local 
society.  Equal  representation  on  the  district  council  for 
each  society  has  sometimes  been  secured  by  the  small  local 
unions,  which  are  watchful  to  prevent  any  encroachment 
upon  their  independence.  The  more  centralized  district 
unions,  which  hold  the  welfare  of  the  majority  paramount 
to  the  preservation  of  local  authority,  ordinarily  permit 
representation  in  proportion  to  membership.  The  district 
council  transacts  all  important  business,  though  in  some 
trades  the  members,  wishing  to  retain  control  over  the  adop- 
tion of  amendments  to  the  constitution  and  of  regulations 
governing  the  conditions  of  employment,  require  that  the 
decision  of  the  council  on  such  matters  be  submitted  to  a 
referendum  vote.  The  officers  of  the  district  union  are  com- 
monly a  president,  a  vice-president,  a  recording  secretary, 
a  financial  secretary,  a  treasurer,  and  trustees.  Sometimes 
a  single  official  known  as  the  secretary-treasurer  performs 
the  duties  of  the  recording  secretary,  financial  secretary,  and 
treasurer.  Frequently  there  is  also  an  executive  board, 
which  transacts  emergency  business  between  the  meetings 
of  the  district  council.  Often  the  district  union  maintains 
a  business  agent,  since  many  small  local  societies  lack  suffi- 
cient money  to  maintain  one  of  their  own.  Except  the  busi- 
ness agent,  and  occasionally  the  secretary-treasurer,  the 
officers  serve  without  pay  or  receive  only  a  nominal  sum. 
Quite  commonly  the  business  agent  is  elected  by  popular 


156  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [262 

vote  of  the  members  of  all  the  local  societies,  though  some- 
times the  district  council  selects  the  business  agent  from  a 
list  of  candidates  submitted  by  the  local  unions.  Almost 
invariably  the  other  officers  and  the  members  of  the  execu- 
tive board  are  selected  by  the  district  council,  and  as  a  rule 
only  the  delegates  comprising  the  council  are  eligible  to 
these  positions. 

The  form  of  government  and  the  problems  of  government 
of  the  district  unions  are  very  similar  to  those  of  the  national 
and  international  associations.  In  both,  for  example,  there 
is  variety  of  opinion  and  practice  concerning  the  use  of  the 
initiative  and  referendum.  In  both  there  is  the  struggle 
between  those  who  favor  equal  and  those  who  favor  pro- 
portional representation.  The  problems  of  government  of 
the  national  union  are  made  more  complicated,  however,  by 
its  wider  territorial  jurisdiction.  Thus,  while  the  district 
council,  which  can  meet  weekly  if  necessary,  transacts  nearly 
all  business  of  the  district  union,  the  national  trade-union 
convention,  which  can  be  convoked,  because  of  distance, 
only  for  a  few  days  each  year,  transacts  but  a  small  part  of 
the  national  business,  matters  arising  during  the  long  period 
between  its  sessions  being  considered  by  the  officers  or  the 
executive  board  or  referred  to  a  general  vote  of  the  mem- 
bers. No  detailed  statement  concerning  the  government  of 
the  district  union  will  be  made  in  these  pages,  since  to  do  so 
would  only  be  to  repeat  the  discussion  of  problems  which 
must  be  considered  in  the  chapters  devoted  to  the  govern- 
ment of  the  national  unions. 


CHAPTER  IX 
THE  NATIONAL  CONVENTION 

The  convention  of  delegates  from  the  several  local  soci- 
eties is  perhaps  the  most  important  part  of  the  governmental 
machinery  of  national  and  international  trade  unions.  In 
its  general  features  it  does  not  differ  widely  from  the  assem- 
blies or  conventions  held  regularly  by  church,  fraternal, 
and  other  organizations.  The  delegates  assemble  at  the 
time  and  place  fixed  by  the  preceding  convention.  They 
meet  in  some  convenient  public  hall,  are  welcomed  by  muni- 
cipal executives  and  local  trade-union  leaders,  continue  in 
session  five  days  or  a  week,  perhaps  a  little  longer,  and  then 
adjourn  for  a  year,  two  years,  or  more. 

The  trade-union  convention  exercises  executive  and  judi- 
cial as  well  as  legislative  functions,  thus  violating  the  polit- 
ical principles  of  those  who  hold  that  each  of  these  three 
functions  of  government  should  be  vested  in  a  separate 
organ  of  government.  In  exercising  its  legislative  power  it 
has  equal  authority  to  pass  every  kind  of  rule.  In  fact,  the 
trade  unions  ordinarily  make  no  distinction  between  con- 
stitutional and  statutory  laws.  All  kinds  of  rules  are 
adopted  in  exactly  the  same  manner.  At  one  moment, 
therefore,  the  convention  may  be  remodeling  the  entire 
machinery  of  government,  or  transferring  important  func- 
tions from  the  local  unions  to  the  international  union ;  at 
another,  it  may  be  passing  an  unimportant  rule  to  the  eflfect 
that  the  union  label  shall  be  printed  on  red  instead  of  blue 
paper.  Exceptions  are  the  International  Typographical 
Union  and  the  Shingle  Weavers'  Union.  In  imitation  of 
the  American  political  system,  both  require  that  "constitu- 
tional "  amendments,  which  have  been  adopted  by  conven- 
tion, must  be  submitted  to  popular  vote,  whereas  the  so- 

157 


158  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [264 

called  "  by-laws  "  and  "  general  laws  "  require  no  such  rati- 
fication, and  go  immediately  into  effect  upon  enactment  by 
the  representative  assembly. 

Acting  as  a  judicial  tribunal,  the  convention  considers 
grievances  brought  by  national  officers,  local  unions,  or  mem- 
bers, and  these  grievances  may  involve  violations  of  the  rules 
of  local  unions  as  well  as  of  those  of  the  national  union. 
In  consequence,  while  some  of  the  suits  laid  before  conven- 
tion are  important,  others  are  trivial.  At  one  time  the  con- 
vention may  be  suspending  a  local  union  for  serious  viola- 
tion of  the  rules ;  at  another  time  it  may  be  sustaining  a  sub- 
ordinate union  in  imposing  a  fine  of  one  or  two  dollars  on 
a  member  for  some  petty  misdemeanor.  An  exception  must 
be  made  of  five  international  unions  which  do  not  permit 
members  who  have  appealed  to  the  international  officers  or 
international  executive  board  from  a  decision  of  their  local 
union  to  appeal  as  a  final  resort  to  convention.^  Save  in 
these  few  organizations,  the  time  of  the  convention  has  been 
largely  wasted  by  the  consideration  of  unimportant  appeals. 

The  levy  of  taxes,  the  appropriation  of  revenue,  the  dec- 
laration of  industrial  war,  and  the  ratification  of  agreements 
are  the  functions  exercised  by  the  trade-union  convention. 
That  assembly  fixes  the  amount  of  dues  and  assessments; 
it  controls  disbursements ;  it  orders  strikes  against  em- 
ployers. The  convention  has  the  final  power  in  making 
agreements.  Even  when  collective  bargaining  is  conducted 
by  the  local  societies,  the  national  union  frequently  fixes 
rules  of  apprenticeship,  hours  of  labor,  and  other  conditions 
of  employment  which  the  subordinate  lodges  must  demand 
from  employers.  When  the  terms  of  the  labor  contract  are 
determined  by  a  national  or  district  joint  conference  between 
employers  and  employees,  the  national  or  district  convention 
practically  always  meets  immediately  before  the  joint  con- 
ference and  outlines  the  terms  which  its  representatives  are 

^  These  are  the  following  unions :  Hotel  and  Restaurant  Em- 
ployees, Paper  Box  Makers,  Paper  Makers  and  Pulp,  Sulphite  and 
Paper  Mill  Workers,  Pavers,  and  Railway  Conductors. 


265]  THE    NATIONAL    CONVENTION  I  59 

to  demand."  The  convention  performs  many  other  func- 
tions. It  elects  officers,  and  audits  their  accounts.  Through 
its  committees  it  performs  at  times  a  wide  variety  of  de- 
tailed administrative  duties  which  in  a  political  government 
are  usually  delegated  to  the  executive  officers. 

The  convention  of  the  larger  trade  unions  has  the  fault  of 
the  representative  assembly  in  many  political  governments 
and  voluntary  societies,  namely,  that  it  is  too  large  to  trans- 
act business  very  efficiently.  Sometimes  several  hundred 
delegates  are  present  at  its  sessions.  Careful  formulation 
of  policies  or  sifting  of  evidence  in  judicial  cases  by  such 
a  large  body  is  impracticable.  Therefore  the  usual  practice 
of  creating  committees  to  perform  functions  has  been  fol- 
lowed. In  consequence,  much  of  the  time  of  conventions 
is  spent  in  accepting  or  rejecting  the  proposals  of  committees. 

The  trade-union  conventions  almost  outrival  the  state  and 
federal  legislatures  of  the  United  States  in  the  bewilder- 
ing number  and  variety  of  their  committees.  The  commit- 
tee on  constitution,  or  the  committee  on  laws,  as  it  is  vari- 
ously termed,  is  perhaps  the  most  important.  To  it  all 
amendments  to  the  rules  are  submitted.  In  some  unions  this 
committee  reports  concerning  all  amendments  submitted  to 
it  merely  with  favorable  or  unfavorable  comment.  In  other 
unions  it  follows  the  usual  legislative  practice  of  pigeon- 
holing the  amendments  which  it  deems  undesirable,  and 
presents,  perhaps  in  a  reconstructed  form,  those  which  it 
desires  the  convention  to  pass.  Besides  this  general  legis- 
lative committee,  special  ones  are  created  to  consider  or 
draft  rules  regulating  strikes,  sick  benefits,  the  union  label, 
or  apprenticeship.  A  judiciary  committee,  sometimes 
known  as  the  committee  on  appeals  or  grievances,  considers 
appeals  from  judicial  decisions  of  national  officers  and  local 
unions.  One  committee  sanctions  strikes.  Another  audits 
the  financial  accounts  of  officers.     There  are  committees  to 


"For  some  years  the  Amalgamated  Association  of  Iron,  Steel  and 
Tin  Workers  held  two  separate  conventions,  one  to  regulate  the 
internal  affairs  of  the  organization,  the  other  to  draw  up  the  scale 
of  wages  to  be  demanded  by  employees.  Since  1886,  however,  the 
two  conventions  have  been  merged. 


l6o  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [266 

consider  conditions  of  employment,  wages,  hours  of  labor, 
relations  with  other  unions,  printing,  and  the  trade  journal. 

Frequently  the  duties  of  these  numerous  committees  are 
not  carefully  coordinated.  Such  lack  of  coordination  is 
particularly  apparent  in  the  legislative  work  of  convention. 
Amendments  to  the  rules  are  drafted  and  submitted  to  the 
representative  assembly  not  only  by  the  general  committee 
on  constitution,  and  by  committees  especially  created  to 
frame  legislation  on  some  particular  matter,  but  also  by  com- 
mittees formed  for  wholly  different  purposes.  For  example, 
the  amendments  to  the  rules  recommended  by  the  president 
or  secretary-treasurer  in  their  reports  to  convention  may 
be  drafted  in  legal  form  by  the  committee  on  officers'  re- 
ports. Amendments  to  the  rules  governing  the  use  and 
administration  of  the  label  may  be  proposed  by  the  com- 
mittee appointed  to  devise  means  for  advertising  and  pro- 
moting the  demand  for  the  label.  Amendments  to  the  rules 
relating  to  the  payment  of  strike  benefits  may  be  suggested 
by  the  committee  which  considers  petitions  to  declare  strikes. 
The  convention  does  not  ordinarily  refer  all  these  proposed 
amendments  to  a  single  coordinating  committee.  The  result 
is  confusion  and  conflict.  On  one  occasion  in  the  early  days 
of  the  Iron  Molders'  Union,  two  committees  submitted  to 
the  convention  resolutions  to  the  effect  that  a  certain 
measure  should  be  referred  to  a  vote  of  the  members.  One 
resolution  provided  that  the  measure  should  be  adopted  if 
three  fourths  of  the  members  voted  in  its  favor,  and  the 
other  if  three  fourths  of  the  local  unions  so  voted.^  The 
convention,  failing  to  observe  the  conflict,  adopted  both  reso- 
lutions. The  Iron  Holders'  Union  and  some  others  of  the 
older  organizations  have  remedied  this  fault  by  submitting 
all  amendments,  by  whomsoever  proposed,  to  one  committee. 

The  governmental  efficiency  of  the  trade-union  convention 
is  limited  because  it  can  be  convoked  so  infrequently  and 
can  remain  in  session  such  a  very  short  time.  None  of  the 
unions  hold  conventions  oftener  than  once  a  year,  and  many 

'  Proceedings,  1874. 


267]  THE    NATIONAL    CONVENTION  161 

of  them  less  frequently.  The  length  of  each  session  has 
been  more  and  more  protracted  as  organizations  have  grown 
in  the  size  and  number  of  their  activities.  For  example,  the 
convention  of  Iron,  Steel  and  Tin  Workers  lasted  for  three 
days  in  1876  and  for  seventeen  days  in  1902;  that  of  the 
Cigar  Makers  lasted  for  five  days  in  1866  and  for  eighteen 
days  in  1896.  Nevertheless,  in  fifty-six  associations  from 
which  information  was  obtained  the  average  length  of  the 
convention  was  seven  days ;  in  only  twelve  of  these  was  the 
convention  in  session  for  more  than  ten  days.  The  most 
protracted  sessions  are  those  of  the  Iron  Molders,  whose 
delegates  continued  to  meet  together  in  1902  for  twenty  days. 
Certainly  a  week  or  even  two  weeks  seems  a  very  short  time 
in  which  to  adopt  needed  legislation,  clear  the  docket  of 
judicial  cases,  elect  officers,  audit  accounts,  levy  dues,  appro- 
priate funds,  declare  strikes,  and  transact  the  numerous 
other  items  of  business  which  have  been  accumulating  during 
the  year  or  more  since  last  convention. 

Short  as  is  the  period  allotted  for  the  meetings  of  con- 
vention, much  time  is  lost  in  waiting  for  committees  to  re- 
port. Little  is  ever  accomplished  on  the  first  day,  since  the 
convention  can  take  no  action  until  the  credential  committee 
determines  the  right  of  the  delegates  to  take  part  in  its 
deliberations.  After  listening  to  the  addresses  of  welcome, 
a  recess  is  taken  until  the  credential  committee  is  ready  to 
report.  After  the  convention  has  organized,  after  commit- 
tees have  been  appointed  or  elected  and  work  has  been  as- 
signed to  each,  the  delegates  mark  time  again  until  these 
committees  are  prepared  to  make  their  reports.  During  this 
interval  the  societies  in  the  city  where  the  convention  is  being 
held  seize  the  opportunity  to  entertain  the  delegates,  whose 
time  is  spent  in  part  at  least  in  attendance  at  picnics  and 
entertainments.  In  consequence,  most  of  the  business  is 
rushed  through  during  the  latter  part  of  the  session.  Dur- 
ing these  last  few  days  national  officers  must  be  elected  and 
the  place  for  next  convention  chosen.  If  the  contest  is  a 
close  one,  much  time  is  consumed  in  electioneering  and  wire- 


1 62  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS        [268 

pulling,  and  frequently,  if  there  are  several  candidates,  in 
taking  a  number  of  ballots.  Sometimes  only  a  couple  of 
days  remain  in  which  to  adopt  amendments  to  the  rules  and 
formulate  trade  policies. 

Some  eleven  organizations  save  time  by  having  the  cre- 
dential committee  meet  a  day  or  two  before  the  delegates 
assemble,  so  that  it  can  present  its  report  immediately  on  the 
opening  of  convention.  In  four  associations  this  commit- 
tee also  audits  the  financial  accounts  of  the  officers,  and  in 
two  others  it  considers  amendments  and  resolutions. 
Some  sixteen  other  national  unions,  only  two  of  which  are 
included  in  the  eleven  noted  above,  provide  that  the  com- 
mittee on  amendments  and  resolutions  shall  meet  from  three 
to  ten  days  before  the  representative  assembly  convenes. 
This  committee  compiles  carefully  all  amendments  and  reso- 
lutions referred  to  it  by  delegates  and  local  unions.  Some- 
times this  committee  prints  its  report  on  the  amendments 
and  resolutions  referred  to  it  by  the  delegates  and  local 
unions,  and  places  a  copy  in  the  hands  of  each  delegate 
during  the  first  days  of  the  session.  In  at  least  two  associa- 
tions this  committee  also  considers  appeals  and  grievances, 
and  in  four  associations  it  audits  the  financial  accounts  of 
the  ofificers.  As  a  result  the  convention  has  much  greater 
opportunity  to  deliberate  on  matters  brought  before  it,  and 
is  less  apt  to  accept  hurriedly  the  opinion  of  committees. 

In  fixing  the  basis  of  representation  in  convention,  the 
same  opposition  has  existed  between  the  large  and  the  small 
local  societies  as  existed  at  the  time  of  the  founding  of  the 
American  Commonwealth  between  the  large  and  the  small 
States.  The  members  of  the  large  local  unions  have  de- 
manded that  representation  should  be  proportional  to  mem- 
bership. They  point  out  the  unfairness  of  allowing  a 
society  of  twenty-five  and  one  of  a  thousand  members  to 
have  the  same  voting  power  in  convention.  They  hold  that 
the  majority,  not  a  small  minority,  should  dominate.*  On 
the  other  hand,  the  small  local  unions  have  demanded  that 
each  society  have  equal  representation.     They  fear  that  if 

*  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  March,  1880. 


269]  THE    NATIONAL    CONVENTION  I63 

representation  were  proportional  to  membership,  two  or 
three  large  societies  would  dictate  policies  to  all  the  rest. 
Such  a  condition  is  not  indeed  a  baseless  fear,  conjured  up 
by  the  small  unions.  Instances  of  it  may  be  found  whenever 
the  system  of  representation  according  to  membership  has 
prevailed.  In  one  national  union  the  delegates  from  the  large 
New  York  society  constituted  such  a  considerable  propor- 
tion of  the  convention  that  frequently  their  vote  would  cause 
the  rejection  or  passage  of  a  measure.  Among  other  things, 
the  New  York  society  wished  to  capture  the  presidency  of 
the  national  union  for  one  of  its  members,  and  in  exchange 
for  help  in  passing  measures  desired  by  other  local  unions 
it  secured  very  easily  enough  votes  to  elect  its  candidate. 

The  trade  unionists  have  not  possessed  sufficient  funds  to 
imitate  the  founders  of  the  United  States  Government,  and 
to  create  as  a  compromise  two  bodies,  one  in  which  each 
local  union  should  be  represented  equally,  and  the  other  in 
which  representation  should  be  according  to  membership. 
In  all  the  national  unions  there  is  only  one  representative 
assembly,  but  the  system  of  representation  in  the  assembly 
varies  widely.  During  the  early  days  of  the  older  organiza- 
tions, when  they  were  still  decentralized,  the  local  societies 
were  given  equal  representation  irrespective  of  their  size. 
The  Bricklayers  and  the  Printers,  whose  international 
unions  were  very  loose  confederations,  continued  this  policy 
for  some  years,  the  Bricklayers  from  1867  to  1890  and  the 
Printers  from  1852  to  1869.  At  the  present  time,  of  the 
twelve  organizations  which  permit  equal  representation  of 
local  societies,  six  are  young,  decentralized  associations.' 
Of  the  six  older  organizations,  five  are  railway  unions,  and 
in  the  railway  unions  the  subordinate  lodges  are  of  a  more 
or  less  uniform  size,  since  they  do  not  embrace  the  workers 
in  a  certain  locality,  but  those  employed  on  a  particular  unit 
of  the  railway  system. 

*  The  twelve  organizations  are  as  follows :  Ceramic,  Mosaic  and 
Encaustic  Tile  Layers  and  Helpers,  Locomotive  Firemen  and 
Enginemen,  Locomotive  Engineers,  Maintenance-of-Way  Employees, 
Railroad  Trainmen,  Railway  Conductors,  Railway  Employees,  Slate 
and  Tile  Roofers,  Steel  and  Copper  Plate  Printers,  Switchmen, 
Table  Knife  Grinders,  and  Wood,  Wire  and  Metal  Lathers. 


164  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [27O 

One  hundred  and  eleven  other  national  or  international 
unions  make  some  attempt  to  apportion  the  number  of  dele- 
gates according  to  membership.  To  protect  the  small  socie- 
ties from  domination  by  the  large  ones,  however,  twenty- 
five  of  these  associations,  most  of  them  rather  decentralized, 
give  representation  according  to  membership  to  local  unions 
having  less  than  a  certain  number  of  members,  but  limit  all 
larger  local  unions  to  the  same  fixed  maximum  number  of 
delegates.*'  Thus,  since  the  abolishment  of  the  system  of 
equal  representation  in  1869,  the  International  Typograph- 
ical Union  has  permitted  local  unions  with  less  than  a 
thousand  members  to  have  from  one  to  three  delegates, 
according  to  size,  but  has  limited  all  having  a  thousand  and 
over  to  four  delegates.'^  Seventeen  other  associations, 
though  fixing  no  maximum  limit  to  the  number  of  delegates 
which  a  society  may  send  to  convention,  favor  the  smaller 
local  unions  by  increasing  the  basis  of  representation  as  the 
number  of  delegates  from  a  society  increases.  The  Brother- 
hood of  Boilermakers  and  Iron  Shipbuilders  thus  allows  one 
delegate  for  the  first  ten  members,  a  second  for  the  next 
twenty,  and  one  additional  for  each  fifty  members  or  major 
part  thereof. 

In  fifty-six  of  the  one  hundred  and  eleven  national 
unions  representation  is  proportional  to  membership.  The 
number  of  members  which  each  delegate  may  represent 
remains  constant,  no  matter  how  large  the  local  society. 
The  small  local  unions  have  still  the  advantage,  since  each 
society  is  allowed  one  delegate  even  though  it  have  much 
fewer  members  than  the  maximum  number  which  a  single 
delegate  may  represent.    Thus  if  the  basis  of  representation 

'These  are  the  following  unions:  Bakers  and  Confectioners,  Bill 
Posters  and  Billers,  Bricklayers  and  Masons,  Brushmakers,  Carpen- 
ters and  Joiners,  Garment  Workers,  Glove  Workers,  Granite  Cut- 
ters, Heat,  Frost  and  Asbestos  Workers,  Hod  Carriers  and  Build- 
ing Laborers,  Hotel  and  Restaurant  Employees,  Horseshoers, 
Leather  Workers  on  Horse  Goods,  Painters,  Decorators  and  Paper 
Hangers,  Post  Office  Clerks,  Printers,  Printing  Pressmen  and 
Assistants,  Quarry  Workers,  Retail  Clerks,  Stationary  Firemen, 
Tailors,  Watch  Case  Engravers,  Wire  Weavers,  Wood  Carvers,  and 
Woodsmen  and  Saw  Mill  Workers. 

^  Proceedings,  1869. 


271]  THE    NATIONAL    CONVENTION  1 65 

is  one  for  each  hundred  members,  the  society  with  only  ten 
members,  as  well  as  the  one  with  ninety-nine  members,  may 
send  one  delegate  to  convention.  The  tiny  local  unions  have 
very  little  advantage  in  national  unions  where  the  basis  of 
representation  is  small, — only  one  delegate  for  each  thirty, 
twenty,  or  even  five  members.  But  in  thirty-five  of  the 
fifty-six,  the  basis  of  representation  is  one  for  each  fifty 
or  one  hundred,  and  in  the  remaining  fourteen,  one  for 
each  two  hundred,  three  hundred,  or  even  five  hundred. 
To  protect  the  larger  local  unions,  three  of  the  above  national 
unions  require  a  branch  having  less  than  twenty-five  mem- 
bers to  combine  with  another  to  send  a  delegate,  provided 
the  two  have  a  combined  membership  of  twenty-five  or 
more.  Three  others  deny  representation  to  small  local 
unions  of  less  than  twenty  or  twenty-five  members.® 

Unless,  however,  the  expenses  of  the  delegates  are  borne 
by  the  national  union,  the  large  branches,  under  a  system  of 
either  equal  or  proportional  representation,  dominate  the 
convention  for  the  reason  that  the  small  unions  cannot 
afford  the  expense  of  sending  delegates.  The  cost  of  send- 
ing a  representative  is  naturally  a  heavier  burden  to  a  small 
union  than  to  a  large  one.  If  the  expenses  of  a  delegate 
were,  for  example,  fifty  dollars  for  a  branch  of  ten  members, 

*  The  following  table  shows  in  succinct  form  the  various  systems 
of  representation  in  123  national  unions: — 

Number  of  Unions 

Equal  representation    12 

Representation  proportional  to  membership 56 

Maximum  limit  to  number  of  delegates  representing  one 

society,  proportional  representation  for  societies  with 

less  than  the  maximum  number 25 

Basis  of  representation  increases  as  the  delegates  of  a 

society  increase  in   number 18 

Basis  of  representation  decreases  as  the  delegates  of  a 

society  increase  in  number 4 

Basis  of  representation  increases  and  then  decreases  as 

the  delegates  of  a  society  increase  in  number 2 

Each  local  union  sends  one  delegate  who  casts  a  number 

of  votes  proportional  to  the  number  of  members  he 

represents   6 

Total    123 


l66  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [2/2 

the  cost  would  be  five  dollars  apiece.  For  a  branch  of  one 
hundred  members  it  would  be  fifty  cents  apiece.  When, 
therefore,  the  local  unions  of  a  trade  defray  this  expense, 
only  a  small  proportion  of  them  are  usually  represented.^ 
Thus,  of  the  one  hundred  and  seventy  local  unions  belonging 
to  the  International  Union  of  Plumbers  in  1898,  only  twenty 
were  represented  at  the  convention. ^°  At  the  convention  of 
the  Carpenters  in  1890  only  one  hundred  and  ninety-nine 
delegates,  representing  one  hundred  and  fifty-seven  branches, 
were  present,  though  the  general  secretary  reported  that 
the  national  organization  embraced  seven  hundred  and  four 
local  unions.^^ 

Sometimes  a  local  union  which  cannot  afford  the  expense 
of  sending  a  representative  to  the  convention  requests  the 
delegate  from  a  nearby  local  union  to  introduce  the  resolu- 
tion it  desires  to  have  adopted,  and  to  vote  for  it  by  proxy. 
The  system  of  representation  by  proxy  has  been  tried  by  all 
the  older  national  unions,  and  is  expressly  permitted  by  the 
rules  of  thirteen  out  of  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  organi- 
zations. The  danger  of  proxy  representation  is  that  a 
single  delegate,  or  a  few  delegates,  to  whom  a  large  number 
of  proxies  have  been  entrusted  may  hold  the  balance  of 
power  in  convention.  When  the  vote  is  fairly  close,  these 
proxies  may  decide  the  fate  of  a  measure.  In  exchange  for 
these  votes  on  certain  questions,  the  proxy-holders  may 
acquire  control  over  a  sufficient  number  of  the  votes  of 
other  delegates  to  secure  the  election  of  their  candidate  or 
the  adoption  of  a  particular  resolution  in  which  they  are 
interested.  For  this  reason  four  of  the  associations  which 
permit  proxies  limit  strictly  the  number  which  any  one 
delegate  may  hold,  and  two  give  this  privilege  only  to  very 
small  local  unions.  Moreover,  a  large  number  of  unions 
forbid  entirely  the  system  of  representation  by  proxy. 

'At  least  three  associations  consider  that  each  local  union,  no 
matter  how  small,  should  shoulder  the  financial  burden  of  sending 
at  least  one  delegate,  and  they  impose  a  fine  on  the  subordinate 
union  that  fails  to  do  so. 

"  Proceedings,  1898. 

"  Proceedings,  1890,  pp.  6,  15. 


2/3  J  THE    NATIONAL    CONVENTION  1 6/ 

Six  national  unions  reduce  the  cost  of  representation  in 
convention  by  providing  that  all  local  unions,  irrespective  of 
size,  may  send  one  delegate,  each  of  whom  casts,  however, 
a  number  of  votes  proportional  to  the  membership  he  repre- 
sents.^- Thirty-nine  other  associations  permit  the  local 
societies  to  send  less  than  the  number  of  delegates  to  which 
the  local  society  is  entitled;  the  number  may  be  limited  to 
one,  who  in  seven  unions  casts  either  fewer  than,  or,  more 
usually,  as  many  votes  as  the  whole  number  of  representa- 
tives to  which  the  society  is  entitled.  The  same  objection 
may  be  made  against  this  system,  however,  as  against  that 
of  proxy  representation,  namely,  that  it  permits  the  concen- 
tration of  too  great  a  voting  power.  When  in  1880  the 
Cigar  Makers  adopted  a  rule  that  a  single  delegate  could  cast 
all  of  the  votes  of  his  society,  the  largest  local  union,  No. 
144  of  New  York,  \vith  thirty-six  hundred  members,  sent  to 
the  next  convention  one  delegate  privileged  to  cast  thirty-six 
votes,  or  thirty-two  per  cent  of  the  total  number  of  votes  in 
the  convention.  Five  of  the  above  thirty-nine  associations, 
therefore,  limit  the  number  of  votes  which  one  delegate  may 
cast,  and  thus  each  local  society  must  send  two  or  more 
delegates  if  it  wishes  to  cast  its  full  quota  of  votes. 

Thirteen  national  unions  pay  the  railway  fare  of  their 
delegates  in  order  to  place  at  an  equal  advantage  the 
branches  near  and  those  at  a  distance  from  the  place  of 
meeting,  as  well  as  to  aid  the  small  local  unions  which  can- 
not otherwise  afford  to  send  representatives.  Another 
national  association  pays  the  railway  fare  of  delegates  for 
each  mile  over  five  hundred ;  the  other  expenses  are  borne 
by  the  subordinate  unions.  Even  with  such  financial  assist- 
ance from  the  federal  organization,  many  branches  fail  to 
be  represented.  Seventeen  national  or  international  unions 
have  secured  adequate  representation  to  the  small  branches 
by  paying  the  railway  fare  and  hotel  bills  and  other  inci- 
dental expenses  from  the  central  treasury.     In  ninety-two 

"These  are  the  following  unions:  Barbers,  Chain  Makers,  Pilots. 
Saw  Smiths,  Travellers'  Goods  and  Leather  Novelty  Workers,  and 
Upholsterers. 


1 68  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS        [2/4 

organizations,  or  seventy-three  per  cent  of  those  studied, 
the  expense  is  borne  wholly  by  the  local  unions. 

When  the  expense  is  borne  by  the  national  union,  the  large 
local  union  is  taxed  in  order  that  the  small  one  may  be  rep- 
resented. The  local  union  of  one  hundred  or  one  hundred 
and  fifty  members  which  formerly  paid  fifty  cents  per  capita 
to  send  its  own  delegate  to  convention  now  pays  sixty-five 
or  seventy-five  cents  per  capita  to  give  representation  to  the 
branch  of  ten  or  fifteen  members.  The  amount  which  the 
national  organization  pays  in  order  that  the  small  branch 
may  send  a  delegate  to  convention  may  easily  be  larger  than 
the  amount  which  the  small  branch  contributes  during  the 
year  to  the  national  union.  To  make  the  financial  burden 
seem  still  more  unfair  to  the  large  local  unions,  the  small 
unions  predominate  when  the  expenses  of  the  delegates  are 
paid  by  the  national  organization,  whereas  the  large  local 
unions  hold  the  balance  of  power  when  each  subordinate 
society  bears  the  expense.  The  provision  that  small  sub- 
ordinate unions  with  less  than  a  certain  membership  are  not 
entitled  to  representation  eliminates  some  of  the  small  local 
unions,  but  only  four  out  of  some  seventeen  national  unions 
which  pay  the  expenses  of  the  delegates  from  the  central 
treasury  have  this  rule,  and  the  number  of  members  required 
for  representation  in  convention — twenty-five  in  three  organ- 
izations and  twenty  in  a  third — is  too  low  to  eliminate  many 
of  the  small  local  unions. 

Another  objection  to  the  payment  of  the  expenses  of  dele- 
gates by  the  national  union  is  that  it  results  in  making  the 
convention  too  large  for  governmental  efficiency.  The  num- 
ber of  subordinate  lodges  has  been  increasing  in  all  organ- 
ized trades,  not  only  because  of  growth  in  membership,  but 
also  in  consequence  of  the  tendency  to  split  up  the  original 
local  unions  into  smaller  units  according  to  sex,  branch  of 
the  trade,  or  nationality.  In  all  organizations,  therefore, 
the  size  of  the  convention  has  tended  to  grow  larger,  and 
the  growth  has  been  abnormal  in  those  associations  which 
meet  the  expenses  of  the  delegates  from  the  central  treasury. 
At  the  convention  of  Cigar  Makers  held  in  1877,  soon  after 


275]  THE    NATIONAL    CONVENTION  1 69 

the  industrial  depression,  seven  delegates  were  present,  in 
1883  there  were  eighty-five,  and  at  the  convention  of  1896, 
two  hundred  and  forty-five.  In  some  national  organiza- 
tions which  do  not  pay  the  expenses  of  delegates  the  con- 
vention is  restricted  to  a  fairly  convenient  size  only  by  the 
failure  of  many  local  unions  to  send  representatives.  Thus, 
at  the  convention  of  the  United  Brotherhood  of  Carpenters 
and  Joiners  in  1890,  only  one  hundred  and  fifty-seven  out 
of  seven  hundred  and  four  local  unions  were  represented 
by  one  hundred  and  ninety-nine  delegates.  Had  each  of 
the  seven  hundred  and  four  subordinate  lodges  sent  dele- 
gates, the  convention  would  have  been  too  large  to  transact 
its  business  efifectively.^^  Over  seventeen  hundred  local 
unions  now  owe  allegiance  to  the  United  Brotherhood  of 
Carpenters  and  Joiners,  and  if  each  of  these  should  send 
one  or  more  delegates  to  the  convention,  the  representative 
assembly  would  be  a  mass-meeting  too  bulky  to  be  handled 
in  any  efficient  manner.  The  system  of  paying  the  expense 
of  delegates  from  the  national  treasury  is,  therefore,  not 
popular  with  unions,  like  those  of  the  building  trades,  which 
have  a  large  number  of  comparatively  small  local  unions. 

One  plan  to  reduce  the  size  of  convention  and  yet  allow 
representation  proportional  to  membership  is  to  group  the 
local  societies  into  districts  and  to  require  that  those  within 
each  district  join  together  in  electing  delegates.  The  basis 
of  representation  of  the  district  in  the  national  body  could 
be  made  fairly  large,  say  one  delegate  for  each  three  hun- 
dred, five  hundred,  or  even  one  thousand  members.  The 
size  of  the  national  convention  would  be  reduced,  and  the 
basis  of  representation  would  be  more  equitable.  The  cost 
of  holding  convention  would  be  less,  and  so  more  frequent 
or  more  protracted  sessions  could  be  held.  This  plan  has 
been  proposed  repeatedly  in  American  trade  unions.  A  few 
of  the  older  organizations  have  tried  it,  but  they  have  always 
failed.^*    The  failure  to  establish  this  system  may  perhaps 

^Proceedings,  1890. 

"The  Iron  Holders,  who  adopted  the  system  in  1886,  abolished  it 
two  years  later  (Constitution,  1886).  For  another  instance,  see 
Machinists  and  Blacksmiths'  Journal,  October,  1872,  p.  805. 


I/O  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [2/6 

be  ascribed  to  the  decentralized  character  of  American  trade 
unionism.  The  local  union,  jealous  of  any  infringement  of 
its  political  prerogatives,  refuses  to  lose  its  identity  in  the 
national  council  by  any  form  of  district  representation. 

As  the  activities  of  the  national  union  increase,  the  con- 
vention becomes  more  and  more  ineffective  as  a  method  of 
transacting  business,  and  its  power  declines  rapidly.  This 
decline  may  be  marked  off  into  three  very  roughly  defined 
stages.  During  the  first  of  these,  the  representative  assem- 
bly has  been  the  chief,  in  fact,  almost  the  sole  organ  of 
government.  This  stage  occurs  during  the  early  days  of  an 
organization,  when  it  is  still  loosely  decentralized,  and  it 
exists  in  some  of  the  newer  associations  even  today.  The 
functions  of  a  loose  confederation  of  local  unions  are  pri- 
marily legislative  and  judicial,  and  such  functions  the  con- 
vention performs  quite  easily.  The  amount  of  executive 
work  is  very  limited,  and  the  few  unpaid  officials  are  elected 
from  among  the  delegates  at  the  convention  primarily  for 
the  performance  of  certain  services  at  its  sessions,  and  they 
have  few  or  no  other  duties. 

The  second  stage  appears  with  the  growth  of  the  activities 
of  the  central  organization,  and  is  marked  by  the  creation  of 
certain  paid  and  unpaid  officials  and  boards  of  management 
which  levy  assessments,  sanction  the  declaration  of  strikes, 
perform  innumerable  detailed  executive  duties,  make  judi- 
cial decisions,  and  sometimes  exercise  a  limited  legislative 
power  during  the  period  between  conventions.  The  repre- 
sentative assembly  remains,  however,  the  highest  authority 
in  the  organization.  It  usually  continues  to  elect  officers,  to 
remove  them  for  misdemeanors  or  neglect  of  duty,  and  to 
audit  their  accounts.  It  overrides  their  judicial  decisions, 
and  declares  strikes  which  they  have  refused  to  sanction. 
It  is  true  that  only  a  very  few  of  those  who  are  discontented 
with  decisions  of  the  national  officers  or  national  executive 
board  appeal  to  the  convention;  in  consequence,  its  judicial 
work  becomes  very  small,  and  it  has  little  control  over  the 
strike  policy  of  the  organization.  At  the  same  time,  the 
influence  of  the  paid  officers  over  the  convention  grows 


277]  THE    NATIONAL    CONVENTION  I7I 

rapidly.  Giving  their  entire  time  to  the  work  of  the  union, 
these  officials  gain  an  intimate  knowledge  of  the  conditions 
of  the  trade  and  the  internal  affairs  of  the  association,  and 
the  delegates  must  rely  greatly  on  their  judgment.  Indeed, 
an  increasingly  larger  part  of  the  time  of  convention  is 
devoted  to  the  ratification  or  rejection  of  the  legislative  and 
executive  program  outlined  by  the  officers  in  their  reports 
to  the  representative  assembly. 

In  the  third  stage,  government  by  popular  vote  is  substi- 
tuted for  government  by  the  representatives.  This  stage  is 
difficult  to  mark  ofT  chronologically,  since  some  organiza- 
tions have  used  the  so-called  initiative  and  referendum  from 
the  beginning  of  their  history.  Moreover,  the  extent  to 
which  the  representative  assembly  has  been  replaced  by  the 
referendum  varies  in  different  associations.  Some  unions 
have  abolished  conventions,  or  convoke  them  at  infrequent 
intervals.  Another  group  continues  to  hold  conventions 
regularly,  but  submits  all  enactments  of  that  body  to  the 
vote  of  the  members.  A  few  unions  require  that  appeals 
from  judicial  and  strike  decisions  of  the  officers  be  made 
no  longer  to  the  convention  but  to  the  general  membership. 
In  others  the  only  change  has  been  that  officers  are  now 
elected  by  vote  of  the  members,  and  not  as  formerly  by 
convention.  In  another  fairly  large  group  the  referendum 
is  used  merely  to  adopt  emergency  legislation  between  the 
sessions  of  the  representative  assembly,  and  since  the  repre- 
sentatives are  at  liberty  to  revoke  or  amend  such  emergency 
legislation,  the  power  of  convention  is  in  no  wise  limited. 
Finally,  there  remains  a  considerable  number  of  unions 
which  refer  no  questions  of  any  kind  to  popular  vote,  and  in 
these  the  convention  continues  to  be  the  primary  organ  of 
government. 


CHAPTER  X 
THE  OFFICERS   OF  THE   NATIONAL  UNION 

Certain  governmental  machinery  is  needed  to  do  adminis- 
trative work  which  a  representative  body  like  a  convention 
cannot  perform.  From  the  beginning  of  national  trade 
unionism  some  one  has  been  required  to  collect  revenue, 
and  a  corresponding  secretary  has  also  been  needed  to  serve 
as  the  agent  of  communication  between  the  local  societies 
and  the  national  union.  Some  one  has  had  to  do  a  police- 
man's work  in  enforcing  the  observance  of  the  national 
rules.  As  the  activities  of  the  federal  organization  have 
developed,  an  executive  has  been  created  to  manage  the 
complicated  administrative  machinery. 

Certain  machinery  of  government  is  also  required  to  make 
decisions  on  matters  the  consideration  of  which  cannot  be 
postponed  until  the  next  convention.  One  question  which 
must  nearly  always  be  decided  immediately  is  the  desirability 
of  a  strike.  Sometimes,  indeed,  the  postponement  of  a  strike 
may  preclude  the  necessity  of  its  declaration,  since  greater 
deliberation  may  show  the  lack  of  necessity  for  it,  or 
further  conference  with  employers  may  secure  its  peaceful 
adjustment.  When  the  declaration  of  a  strike  seems  inev- 
itable, the  delay  which  furnishes  the  employer  an  oppor- 
tunity for  preparation  may  steal  away  most  of  its  effective- 
ness. Industrial  conditions  change  rapidly.  At  the  moment, 
all  may  be  propitious ;  if  action  is  postponed  until  the  next 
convention,  the  opportunity  will  be  lost. 

Moreover,  the  strike,  the  success  of  which  seemed  reason- 
ably certain  at  the  time  when  it  was  declared  by  the  con- 
vention, may  become  a  hopeless  venture  after  the  adjourn- 
ment of  that  body  because  of  an  unexpected  change  in 
industrial  conditions.  For  this  reason,  trade-union  leaders 
dislike  exceedingly  to  be  bound  by  rigid  and  specific  instruc- 

172 


279]  OFFICERS    OF    THE    NATIONAL    UNION  1 73 

tions  of  the  representative  assembly.  We  find  the  secretary 
of  the  Miners'  Association  of  Western  Pennsylvania  com- 
plaining in  1880  about  the  "  iron  jacket  of  orders  from 
convention."  The  previous  convention  had  ordered  a  strike 
of  miners  in  all  collieries  located  along  the  railroads  leading 
into  Pittsburg;  but  the  miners  at  the  collieries  located  beside 
the  rivers,  by  which  coal  was  sent  to  Pittsburg,  remained  at 
v^rork,  and  during  the  first  week  of  the  struggle  the  coal 
which  they  mined  was  sent  to  fill  the  contracts  of  the  opera- 
tors of  the  railway  mines.  From  the  beginning,  therefore, 
the  ultimate  failure  of  the  strike  was  clearly  apparent.  The 
secretary  felt  himself  bound  by  the  specific  orders  of  con- 
vention, however,  and  feared  by  disobedience  to  bring  down 
upon  himself  the  wrath  of  the  organization  and  the  accusa- 
tion that  he  had  been  bribed  by  the  operators.  The  custom 
of  restricting  the  officers  to  the  mechanical  duties  of  obeying 
orders  from  conventions  he  declared  to  be  absurd.  The 
opinion  of  one  who  is  paid  to  study  the  markets  and,  if 
necessary,  visit  the  places  where  coal  is  sold  should  have 
due  weight,  he  thought,  and  much  should  be  left  to  his 
discretion.^ 

In  other  words,  the  trade  union  is  a  belligerent  association 
nearly  always  engaged  in  a  guerilla  struggle  with  employers, 
sometimes  in  wide-spreading  general  combat;  and  for  suc- 
cess in  war,  industrial  as  well  as  military,  prompt  decisions 
and  a  flexible  policy  are  requisite.  The  very  life  of  the 
organization  may  be  the  penalty  of  long  delay  and  rigid 
rules.  Therefore,  between  conventions  some  governmental 
body  must  have  authority  to  declare  strikes,  to  conduct 
them,  to  call  them  off,  or  to  levy  special  assessments  when 
the  funds  are  exhausted  by  a  long  struggle. 

During  the  period  between  conventions  some  judicial 
authority  must  be  created  to  interpret  the  meaning  of  vague 
or  conflicting  rules,  otherwise  the  carrying  out  of  the  activi- 
ties of  the  organization  may  be  abruptly  halted.  Some 
judicial  authority  must  also  be  created  to  discipline  local 
unions  and  individual  members  and  to  hear  appeals  of  mem- 

*  National  Labor  Tribune,  February  21,  1880,  p.  i. 


174  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [280 

bers  from  local  unions.  If  no  such  authority  exists,  the 
guilty  may  delay  their  punishment  and  the  acquittal  of  the 
innocent  may  be  postponed. 

Usually  the  representative  assembly  has  jealously  en- 
deavored to  retain  exclusive  legislative  power,  but  its  efforts 
have  nearly  always  failed.  Unexpected  problems  are  con- 
tinually arising  for  which  the  rules  make  no  provision. 
Moreover,  the  rules,  hastily  adopted  by  the  convention,  are 
frequently  worded  vaguely  and  carelessly,  and  to  put  them 
into  operation  is  difficult  or  impossible.  It  may  easily 
happen,  for  example,  that  while  provision  is  made  for  the 
payment  of  a  sick  benefit,  the  administrative  machinery  to 
carry  out  such  a  plan  is  not  created  or  is  wholly  inadequate. 
The  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  has  managed,  by 
subtle  reasoning,  to  stretch  the  rigid  American  Constitution 
to  meet  new  conditions.  The  trade-union  officials,  with  less 
respect  for  the  forms  of  the  law,  have  openly  and  flagrantly 
violated  their  rules.  Sometimes  edicts  containing  new  legis- 
lation are  promulgated  by  the  chief  executive  under  the 
guise  of  judicial  decisions.  Frequently  not  even  this  excuse 
is  presented.  One  example  may  be  cited  from  the  history  of 
the  Cigar  Makers'  International  Union.  In  1885  two  local 
societies  of  cigar  makers  in  Cincinnati  issued  a  circular 
attacking  the  president  of  the  international  union  and  ques- 
tioning the  honesty  of  his  intentions.  The  president 
promptly  replied  with  an  order  to  the  effect  that  any  local 
union  making  charges  against  an  officer  during  the  interval 
between  convention  and  failing  to  substantiate  them  would 
forfeit  its  charter.  This  order  was  practically  new  legis- 
lation; but,  going  even  further,  the  president  gave  the  law 
a  retroactive  application  by  suspending  the  local  union." 

Such  unconstitutional  acts  occur  most  frequently  during 
the  early  days  of  an  organization  when  its  rules  are  still  in 
a  formative  stage,  are  general  and  vague,  and  have  not  yet, 
through  experience,  been  elaborated  in  detail  to  meet  con- 
tingencies. At  practically  every  convention  of  the  Iron 
Molders  from  1864  to  1874  the  general  president  reported 

'Proceedings,  1885. 


28 1]  OFFICERS    OF    THE    NATIONAL    UNION  1 75 

that  he  had  violated  some  rule  or  had  created  new  ones.  "  I 
am  prepared,"  he  declared  on  one  occasion,  "  to  lay  the 
constitution  on  the  shelf  and  to  do  what  seems  best  to  save 
the  organization,  believing  that  it  is  better  to  have  an  organi- 
zation without  a  constitution  than  to  have  a  constitution 
without  an  organization."^  Each  time  the  convention  par- 
doned his  unlawful  acts  on  the  ground  of  expediency,  or 
allowed  him  to  escape  with  only  a  perfunctory  repriman'l. 

The  unlawful  creation  of  new  rules  and  the  violation  of 
existing  ones  by  the  officers  is  still  found  in  some  of  the 
younger  associations.  The  officials  of  perhaps  a  dozen  of 
the  newer  unions  with  whom  the  writer  has  discussed  this 
question  have  argued  frankly  that  they  must  exercise  such 
legislative  power  in  order  to  run  their  organizations.  In 
support  of  this  contention,  the  chief  executive  of  a  union 
which  was  organized  very  recently  gave  the  following  illus- 
tration. The  so-called  constitution  or  book  of  rules  adopted 
by  the  first  convention  was,  he  declared,  a  mass  of  general- 
ities and  inconsistencies,  and  was  wholly  unusable.  He 
therefore  rearranged  and  reworded  the  rules  very  carefully, 
and  even  added  explanatory  sections  in  an  endeavor  to 
express  in  consistent  and  intelligible  form  the  ideas  of  the 
delegates  as  he  remembered  them.  The  rules  which  he 
thus  formulated  he  caused  to  be  printed  and  to  be  presented 
to  his  fellow-members.  Naturally,  as  he  naively  confessed, 
many  objections  were  made  at  first ;  but  complaint  soon 
ceased,  and  the  union  has  continued  to  be  governed  by  the 
rules  which  he  promulgated. 

In  most  organizations  efficient  and  expeditious  machinery 
for  the  adoption  of  amendments  to  the  constitution  during 
the  period  between  conventions  has  been  gradually  created, 
and  with  this  development  there  have  been  fewer  violations 
and  a  more  wholesome  respect  for  the  rules  by  officers  and 
members.  Indeed,  some  of  the  officials  of  the  older  and 
better  organized  unions,  when  asked  whether  they  exercised 
unconstitutional  legislative  power,  seem  as  much  shocked  at 

*  Proceedings,  1867. 


176  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [282 

the  idea  as  might  have  been  a  law-  and  precedent-loving  judge 
of  a  superior  court. 

The  officers  in  the  early  national  unions  vi^ere  such  as  had 
been  found  necessary  for  the  government  of  the  local  so- 
cieties.* Nor  during  these  early  years  were  they  unsuitable. 
In  the  local  union  the  primary  organ  of  government  was  the 
mass-meeting  of  members,  and  in  the  federal  association  it 
was  the  representative  assembly.  For  the  conduct  of  both 
the  local  mass-meeting  and  the  federal  assembly  the  same 
officers  were  needed,  namely,  a  president  to  act  as  chairman, 
a  vice-president  to  take  his  place  when  he  was  absent,  and  a 
recording  secretary  to  keep  the  minutes.  Between  the  meet- 
ings there  was  also  needed  for  both  local  and  national  union 
a  corresponding  secretary,  a  financial  secretary  to  collect 
dues,  and  a  treasurer  to  take  care  of  the  funds.  In  185 1 
the  Printers  made  provision  in  their  first  constitution  for  a 
president,  a  vice-president,  a  recording  secretary,  a  corre- 
sponding secretary,  and  a  treasurer;^  the  Iron  Molders  in 
1859  provided  for  a  president,  a  recording  secretary,  a  cor- 
responding secretary,  a  treasurer,  and  a  door-keeper;^  the 
Cigar  Makers  for  a  president,  a  vice-president,  an  English 
recording  secretary,  a  German  recording  secretary,  a  cor- 
responding secretary,  and  a  treasurer.''' 

Between  conventions  these  officers  had  few  duties  to  per- 
form. At  one  of  the  early  conventions  of  the  Iron  Holders' 
Union  the  president  reported  that  there  were  so  few  duties 
for  each  officer  that  each  one  tried  to  do  the  work  of  all  the 
rest.^  The  corresponding  secretary  of  the  same  national  or- 
ganization complained  in  1863  that  he  had  very  little  to  do. 
He  seldom  heard  from  the  local  unions  except  at  long 
intervals  when  some  local  secretary  happened  to  remember 

*  The  oflficers  elected  at  the  first  national  convention  of  Cigar 
Makers  in  1864  were,  with  a  single  exception,  the  same  as  those 
provided  for  in  the  earliest  extant  constitution  of  the  New  York 
local  union  of  the  trade. 

"Constitution,  1851. 

•Constitution,  in  Synopsis  of  Proceedings,  1859. 

^Constitution,  in  MS.  Proceedings  of  the  Convention,  New  York, 
June  21,  1864. 

'  Iron  Molders'  Journal,  June,  1875. 


283]  OFFICERS    OF    THE    NATIONAL    UNION  1 77 

that  one  requirement  of  the  constitution  was  that  subordi- 
nate societies  should  submit  monthly  reports.  The  financial 
secretary  of  the  national  union  reported  in  1863  that  he  had 
not  heard  from  any  local  officers  and  had  not  performed  any 
work  for  the  organization  during  his  term."  At  first  these 
officers  were  all  unpaid.  Later,  some  of  them  were  voted 
annually  by  convention  small  sums,  perhaps  one  hundred  or 
two  hundred  dollars,  or  were  given  travelling  expenses  and 
were  reimbursed  for  the  time  during  which  their  official 
duties  prevented  them  from  working  at  their  trades. 

Some  of  the  decentralized  unions  retained  for  some  years 
the  system  of  unpaid  or  nominally  paid  officials  with  few 
duties.  The  Printers  continued  this  policy  from  1852  to 
1882,  and  the  Bricklayers  and  Masons  from  1867  until  re- 
cently. In  other  trades,  as  the  functions  of  the  federal 
organizations  increased,  the  system  became  wholly  unwork- 
able. Cooperation  in  the  transaction  of  business  between 
officers  located  in  widely  separated  parts  of  the  country  was, 
to  say  the  least,  inconvenient.  Few  also  were  found  willing 
to  serve  as  officers  without  pay.  Frequently  these  positions 
went  begging,  and  usually  new  men  were  elected  each  term. 
Moreover,  as  often  happens  when  men  serve  without  pay, 
the  officers  were  dilatory  in  performing  their  duties  or  neg- 
lected them  entirely.  On  one  occasion  the  secretary  of  one 
union  became  so  disgusted  with  this  system  of  government  in 
general  and  the  negligence  of  his  brother  officers  in  partic- 
ular that  he  secured  authority  by  vote  of  the  local  unions  to 
exercise,  with  some  assistance  from  the  treasurer,  all  func- 
tions of  government  until  the  next  convention. 

A  second  stage  was  reached  when  all  duties  between  con- 
ventions were  performed  by  a  single  paid  official.  This 
stage  was  quickly  attained  in  the  unions  of  cigar  makers, 
iron  molders,  iron  boilers  and  puddlers,  and  other  organiza- 
tions whose  activities  increased  so  rapidly  that  there  was 
soon  enough  work  to  keep  one  man  busy.  In  the  Iron 
Molders'  Union  after  1864  all  power — executive,  judicial, 

*  Proceedings,  1863. 


178  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [284 

and  even  legislative — was  vested  during  the  period  between 
conventions  in  a  single  paid  officer,  known  as  the  president. 
The  president  acted  as  financial  and  corresponding  secre- 
tary, edited  the  trade  journal,  and  admitted  new  local  socie- 
ties to  the  federation.  When  time  permitted,  he  attempted 
to  organize  the  workers  in  non-union  places.  He  visited 
localities  where  a  strike  was  imminent,  and  endeavored  to 
adjust  the  difficulty.  As  a  combination  of  policeman  and 
judge,  he  interpreted  the  national  rules  and  enforced  their 
due  observance,  sat  in  judgment  on  appeals  of  members 
from  decisions  of  local  unions,  and  adjusted  differences  be- 
tween local  unions.  As  a  legislator,  he  promulgated  rules 
on  questions  not  covered  by  the  existing  constitution,  and 
broke  the  rules  whenever  he  thought  that  the  emergency 
demanded  such  action.  There  was  indeed  one  matter  over 
which  he  had  no  power.  He  could  not  declare  a  strike. 
Also,  though  he  collected  the  revenue,  he  was  not  entrusted 
with  the  safe  keeping  of  the  funds,  these  being  under  the 
care  of  the  unsalaried  treasurer.  A  similar  development  oc- 
curred about  this  time  in  the  National  Forge  of  the  Sons 
of  Vulcan.^"  A  single  salaried  official  exercised  executive, 
judicial,  and  legislative  functions.  As  in  the  Iron  Holders' 
Union,  he  could  not  declare  a  strike,  and  was  not  entrusted 
with  the  care  of  the  funds ;  otherwise  his  power  was  ab- 
solute during  the  period  between  conventions.^^ 

The  third  stage  in  the  development  of  the  official  staff  was 
reached  when  the  amount  of  business  to  be  done  had  become 
too  large  for  one  person  and  was  divided  among  several 
salaried  officials,  all  of  whom  were  stationed  in  the  city  se- 
lected as  headquarters  of  the  association.  The  two  officers 
now  found  in  the  great  majority  of  international  unions  are 
the  president  and  the  secretary  or  secretary-treasurer.  The 
president  acts  as  chairman  at  meetings  of  convention  and 

^"Vulcan  Record,  vol.  i,  no.  6;  Constitution,  1874. 

"This  feature  of  government  -was  borrowed  without  change  by 
the  Amalgamated  Association  of  Iron  and  Steel  Workers,  formed 
by  the  amalgamation  of  the  Sons  of  Vulcan  with  two  other  national 
unions  of  iron  and  steel  workers  in  1875. 


285]  OFFICERS    OF    THE    NATIONAL    UNION  1 79 

of  the  general  executive  board.  He  has  supervision  over 
the  administrative  affairs  of  the  organization.  He  is  a  po- 
hceman  enforcing  the  rules,  and  is  frequently  also  a  judge. 
He  travels  often  to  various  parts  of  the  country  to  organize 
new  local  unions,  to  encourage  the  weak  ones,  and  to  adjust 
disputes  betAveen  the  workmen  and  their  employers. 

The  secretary  or  secretary-treasurer  acts  as  secretary  at 
meetings  of  the  convention  and  of  the  general  executive 
board.  He  serves  as  a  medium  of  communication  between 
the  local  societies  and  the  central  union.  He  edits  the  trade 
journal,  save  in  a  few  organizations  which  have  created  a 
special  official  for  this  purpose  or  which  entrust  the  presi- 
dent with  this  duty.^-  He  keeps  the  financial  accounts,  and 
in  a  large  majority  of  unions  also  has  charge  of  the  funds. 
In  about  forty  out  of  one  hundred  and  thirty  international 
unions,  however,  the  secretary  must  turn  over  all  funds  to 
a  treasurer.  This  system  has  grave  inconveniences.  The 
duties  of  the  treasurer  require  only  a  small  part  of  his  time ; 
and  usually  he  is  paid  no  salary  or  only  a  nominal  sum. 
He  works  at  his  trade  and  lives  in  his  home  city,  which  is 
probably  at  some  distance  from  headquarters,  where  the  sec- 
retary is  stationed,  and  much  time  and  energy  are  wasted  in 
sending  money  back  and  forth.  When  a  strike  has  been 
declared,  funds  are  usually  needed  immediately  by  the  local 
strike  committee,  and  delay  in  obtaining  them  may  cause 
serious  results.  For  these  reasons,  most  unions  require  the 
secretary  to  take  care  of  the  funds.  In  these  unions  he 
bears  the  title  of  secretary-treasurer. 

In  certain  large  and  highly  centralized  unions  having  a 
great  mass  of  business  to  be  transacted  the  work  of  the  sec- 
retary is  divided  among  several  paid  officials.  In  fourteen 
out  of  one  hundred  and  thirty  unions  an  official  known  as 
the  editor  relieves  the  secretary  of  the  work  of  editing  the 

"The  president  serves  as  editor  of  the  trade  journal  in  the  unions 
of  railway  conductors,  teamsters,  and  leather  workers  on  horse 
goods.  The  president  of  the  National  Brotherhood  of  Operative 
Potters  is  editor-in-chief  of  the  journal,  and  the  secretary  is  assist- 
ant editor. 


l80  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [286 

trade  journal. ^^  In  the  Iron  Holders'  Union  there  are,  be- 
sides the  editor  of  the  journal,  an  official  known  as  the 
financier  who  keeps  the  financial  books  of  the  federal  asso- 
ciation and  maintains  general  oversight  over  those  of  the 
local  societies,  a  treasurer  to  safeguard  the  funds,  a  general 
secretary  who  conducts  all  correspondence  and  purchases  the 
supplies,  has  reports  printed,  and  attends  to  other  similar 
business,  and  an  assistant  secretary  who  gives  whatever  aid 
is  needed  to  the  secretary  and  the  financier.  In  the  United 
Brewery  Workmen  there  are  three  secretaries  in  addition  to 
the  editor  of  the  journal.  One  of  these  secretaries  attends 
to  all  correspondence.  Another — the  financial  recording  sec- 
retary— acts  as  recording  secretary  at  meetings  of  the  conven- 
tion and  of  the  general  executive  board,  receives  the  dues, 
compiles  statistics,  and  helps  to  conduct  the  correspondence. 
The  third — the  secretary-treasurer — keeps  account  of  re- 
ceipts and  disbursements,  has  charge  of  the  funds,  buys  sup- 
plies, and  is  responsible  for  the  general  conduct  of  the  office. 
Another  group  of  associations  do  not  distribute  the  work  of 
the  secretary-treasurer  among  several  officials,  but  provide 
an  assistant  secretary-treasurer  to  help  in  any  way  that  may 
be  needed." 

A  few  large  and  highly  centralized  unions  have  created 
travelling  officials  to  relieve  the  president  of  duties  requiring 
him  to  journey  to  various  parts  of  the  country.  If  this  were 
not  done,  much  of  his  time  would  be  consumed  in  travelling, 
and  he  would  be  unable  to  perform  his  other  duties.  When 
the  president  is  frequently  absent  from  headquarters,  the 
secretaries  confess  that  they  often  assume  the  judicial  robe 
of  the  president  in  order  to  clear  the  docket  of  rapidly  ac- 
cumulating cases,  and  that,  when  emergency  demands,  they 
discharge  without  constitutional  warrant  other  powers  of  the 

"  These  unions  are  as  follows :  Bakery  and  Confectionery  Work- 
ers, Brewery  Workmen,  Commercial  Telegraphers,  Iron  Holders, 
Iron,  Steel,  and  Tin  Workers,  Locomotive  Engineers,  Locomotive 
Firemen  and  Enginemen,  Machinists,  Maintenance-of-Way  Em- 
ployees, Mine  Workers,  Metal  Polishers,  Post  Office  Clerks,  Stereo- 
typers  and  Electrotypers,  and  Switchmen. 

"In  this  group  are  the  following  unions:  Coopers,  Flint  Glass 
Workers,  Iron,  Steel  and  Tin  Workers,  Machinists,  and  Tailors. 


287]  OFFICERS    OF    THE    NATIONAL    UNION  18I 

chief  officer.  Many  times,  however,  the  secretary  hesitates 
to  assume  such  responsibility,  and  business  neccUng  the  im- 
mediate attention  of  the  president  is  woefully  neglected. 

Very  early  in  the  history  of  the  older  organizations  the 
president  was  relieved  of  part  of  the  work  of  travelling  by 
the  appointment  of  special  strike  deputies  who  visit  locali- 
ties where  strikes  are  imminent  or  in  progress,  send  detailed 
reports  of  conditions  to  headquarters,  and  whenever  it  is 
possible  bring  about  a  peaceful  settlement  of  the  difficulty. 
Very  early,  also,  the  president  was  permitted  to  appoint 
organizers  to  stimulate  the  promotion  of  local  societies  in 
non-union  districts.  The  vice-presidents,  varying  in  num- 
ber in  the  dififerent  organizations,  are  commonly  utilized  as 
organizers  and  strike  deputies,  though  many  national  unions 
appoint  other  members  to  perform  such  service.  Sometimes 
a  vice-president  is  assigned  to  a  particular  district,  but  fre- 
quently he  may  be  dispatched  to  any  part  of  the  country 
at  the  discretion  of  the  president.  A  travelling  officer  with 
a  specialized  work  is  the  union-label  agitator.  At  national 
conventions  and  local  meetings  he  advocates  the  purchase  of 
goods  which  bear  a  label  indicating  that  they  have  been  man- 
ufactured by  members  of  the  union.  Another  travelling 
official  found  in  the  Cigar  Makers'  International  Union  and 
a  few  other  organizations  is  the  so-called  financier,  who 
goes  from  branch  to  branch,  generally  arriving  unexpectedly, 
overhauls  the  financial  accounts,  and,  when  necessary,  reor- 
ganizes the  system  of  financial  administration.  The  Cigar 
Makers'  International  Union,  which  makes  use  of  strike 
deputies,  label  agitators,  organizers,  and  a  financier,  has 
taken  the  lead  in  this  division  of  labor  among  several  trav- 
elling officials. ^^ 

A  fixed  salary  is  paid  to  the  president  by  some  sixty-two 
of  one  hundred  and  ten  associations.  In  one  of  these  unions 
he  receives  only  one  hundred  and  twenty  dollars,  in  another 

"The  president  of  the  Cigar  Makers'  International  Union  spends 
most  of  his  time  at  headquarters,  where,  aided  by  various  clerical 
assistants,  he  performs  the  duties  of  president,  secretary-treasurer, 
and  editor  of  the  trade  journal. 


1 82  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [288 

two  hundred  dollars,  and  in  two  others  only  a  nominal  sum. 
In  the  other  fifty-eight  organizations  his  salary  is  sufficiently 
large  to  enable  him  to  devote  his  whole  time  to  the  organiza- 
tion. Two  unions  pay  only  a  thousand  dollars,  the  others 
larger  amounts,  ranging  in  most  of  them  from  one  to  two 
thousand  dollars.  A  few  aristocrats  among  the  labor  offi- 
cials, usually  in  unions,  such  as  those  of  railway  employees, 
whose  members  are  skilled  and  well  paid,  receive  as  much  as 
five  thousand  dollars  a  year.  Forty-eight  associations,  in- 
cluding many  small,  weak,  recently  organized  unions,  make 
no  provision  for  the  salary  of  the  president.  In  a  few 
of  them  that  officer  is  voted  a  sum  of  money  regularly  or 
occasionally  by  convention.  In  most  of  them  he  works  at 
his  trade,  but  is  allowed  travelling  expenses  and  receives 
compensation  for  time  lost  in  performance  of  his  official 
duties,  usually  at  the  rate  of  wages  prevailing  in  the  craft. 
Sometimes  the  holder  of  such  an  unsalaried  office  makes 
great  sacrifices  in  the  cause  of  unionism.  Frequent  absences 
from  work  render  him  unpopular  with  his  employer,  who, 
conceiving  the  labor  leader  to  be  an  agitator  and  a  disturb- 
ing influence,  is  already  prejudiced  against  him,  and  dis- 
charges him  on  slight  pretext.  Such  unpaid  officials  have 
declared  to  the  writer  that  they  have  walked  the  streets  for 
days  vainly  seeking  for  work.  When  the  president  receives 
no  pay,  naturally  the  position  is  not  keenly  desired.  Often- 
times good  candidates  cannot  be  induced  to  accept  the  office, 
or,  if  elected,  refuse  usually  to  serve  a  second  term. 

Almost  invariably  the  secretary-treasurer  is  paid  a  salary, 
but  in  at  least  twelve  out  of  a  hundred  associations  he  re- 
ceives only  a  nominal  sum  ranging  from  about  thirty  dol- 
lars to  three  hundred  dollars.  The  secretary-treasurer  in 
these  unions,  all  of  them  small  and  newly  organized,  works 
at  his  trade,  and  performs  the  duties  of  his  office  at  night 
or  during  holidays. 

The  vice-presidents  usually  work  at  their  trade  and  re- 
ceive only  travelling  expenses  and  compensation  for  time 
spent  in  the  performance  of  their  official  duties;  but  in  at 
least  twelve  out  of  one  hundred  and  ten  associations,  in- 


289]  OFFICERS    OF    THE    NATIONAL    UNION  1 83 

eluding  the  larger  and  financially  more  prosperous  ones, 
from  one  to  seven  vice-presidents  are  employed  contin- 
uously by  the  union  at  a  fixed  salary.^"  When  the  vice-pres- 
idents are  not  utilized  as  strike  deputies,  organizers,  or  label 
agitators,  the  members  who  are  appointed  to  such  positions 
are  sometimes  employed  continuously  at  a  fixed  annual 
salary.  For  example,  organizers  who  act  as  strike  agents 
and  perform  other  duties  as  occasion  requires  are  kept  con- 
stantly in  the  field  by  the  Bakers,  the  Barbers,  and  the 
Tailors.  More  frequently,  however,  such  travelling  officials 
are  hired  temporarily  by  the  national  president  or  the  execu- 
tive board  as  they  are  needed. 

There  is  a  sharp  contrast  between  the  office  facilities  at 
the  disposal  of  the  officials  of  a  weak  and  struggling  and 
of  a  strong  and  powerful  trade  union.  "  This  is  the  head- 
quarters of  the  international  association,"  grandiloquently 
remarked  the  secretary  of  a  small  union,  as  he  pointed  to 
a  dilapidated  desk  standing  in  one  corner  of  the  family 
living  room,  where  nightly  after  his  work  in  the  factory  he 
performed  the  duties  of  his  office.  In  the  same  city  a  few 
blocks  away  the  officers  of  another  organization  are  housed 
in  a  large,  modern,  splendidly  built  office-building.  Here 
the  elevator  carries  the  visitor  to  the  ninth  story  where  the 
suite  of  rooms  rented  by  the  union  is  located.  One  enters 
a  large  reception  room  where  a  number  of  clerks  are  busily 
employed.  Beyond  is  the  private  office  of  the  president,  and 
a  nearby  room  is  occupied  by  his  private  stenographer.  In 
a  large  adjoining  room  the  secretary,  his  assistant,  and 
several  clerks  are  at  work.  The  editor  has  his  own  little 
den.  There  is  also  a  committee  or  conference  room  where, 
around  a  large  table,  meetings  of  the  executive  board  are 
sometimes  held.  The  rooms  are  not  furnished  luxuriously, 
but  are  equipped  with  all  necessary  office  fixtures, — rugs, 
oak  chairs,  tables,  desks,  filing  cases,  shelves,  iron  safes, 
presses,  and  typewriting  machines. 

'•Among  these  unions  are  included  those  of  the  Bricklayers  and 
Masons,  Iron  Molders,  Iron,  Steel  and  Tin  Workers,  Miners,  Print- 
ers, and  several  organizations  of  railway  employees. 


184  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [29O 

Trade-union  leadership  is  a  profession,  and  to  make  a 
success  of  it  native  ability  and  experience  are  required. 
The  leader  must  learn  to  write,  not  necessarily  grammatic- 
ally, but  v^ith  force  and  clearness.  He  is  doomed  to  an 
unending  succession  of  speeches,  and  so  must  develop  self- 
possession  on  the  platform  and  the  power  to  hold  audiences. 
He  must  know  how  to  handle  his  men.  He  must  learn 
that  much  profanity,  particularly  in  dealing  with  employers, 
does  not  constitute  forcibleness  or  diplomacy.  He  must 
know  intimately  the  conditions  of  the  trade  and  also  much 
about  the  cost  and  methods  of  production.  He  must  be 
resourceful,  constructive,  and  patient ;  he  must  be  constantly 
ready  to  meet  new  and  unexpected  situations  with  few  re- 
sources to  aid  him,  and  perhaps  with  a  discouraged  and 
carpingly  critical  following  at  his  back. 

The  trade  unions  have  made  little  attempt,  however,  to 
impose  qualifications  on  the  candidates  for  international 
offices.  Usually,  of  course,  the  candidate  must  have  been 
a  member  of  the  union  for  a  certain  length  of  time.  Some 
of  the  early  unions  provided  also  that  only  delegates  to  the 
representative  assembly  should  be  eligible,  but  this  limitation 
on  the  selection  of  candidates  was  soon  found  to  be  unde- 
sirable and  was  abolished.  Nevertheless,  the  important  offi- 
cials are  usually  picked  men.  Most  of  them  have  held  some 
office,  such  as  that  of  president,  secretary,  or  business  agent 
in  the  local  union.  Often  they  have  also  served  as  delegates 
at  one  or  perhaps  several  conventions.  Sometimes  they 
have  held  minor  offices  in  the  international  union ;  perhaps 
they  have  been  organizers  or  label  agitators,  have  later  been 
made  vice-president,  and  finally  have  been  promoted  to  the 
presidency  or  the  secretaryship.  Yet  even  with  this  prepar- 
atory education  in  subordinate  positions,  the  newly  elected 
leader  comes  to  his  office  as  very  raw  and  crude  material, 
and  attains  efficiency  only  after  some  years  of  experience. 

For  this  reason  the  older  unions  have  tended  to  lengthen 
the  term  of  office  and  to  reelect  officials  for  several  terms. 
A  president  of  the  Cigar  Makers'  International  Union,  who 
was  first  elected  in  1877,  continued  to  hold  that  position 


291]  OFFICERS    OF    THE    NATIONAL    UNION  1 85 

until  1891.  Then  he  resigned,  to  discharge,  at  the  request  of 
his  fellow-members,  the  less  strenuous  duties  of  financier  for 
the  union.  His  successor  continues  to  occupy  the  office  of 
president.  The  president  elected  by  the  Iron  Molders  at 
the  third  convention  in  1861  was  continued  in  office  until  his 
death  nine  years  later.  The  terms  of  each  of  his  suc- 
cessors have  been  as  long  or  longer.  The  secretary  of  the 
provisional  committee  formed  to  bring  into  existence  a  fed- 
eral association  of  carpenters  in  1881  became  the  first  secre- 
tary-treasurer of  the  newly  established  union,  and  continued 
to  hold  office  for  nearly  twenty  years. 

What  becomes  of  the  trade-union  leader  when  he  is  de- 
feated for  reelection?  Sometimes,  indeed,  he  returns  to  his 
trade,  but  not  very  often.  Years  of  office  work  have  ren- 
dered him  incapable  of  manual  labor  or  have  created  a  dis- 
inclination for  it.  Some  ex-officials,  relying  on  the  patron- 
age of  a  large  host  of  acquaintances  gained  through  their 
former  positions,  have  opened  saloons,  and  are  doing  a  thriv- 
ing business.  Some  of  the  younger  ones  have  studied  law. 
Many  have  gone  into  politics.  Various  former  officials 
of  the  miners'  union  are  now  state  mining  inspectors. 
Some  union  leaders  occupy  positions  in  state  bureaus  of 
labor  and  statistics.  Some  hold  offices  in  one  or  another 
department  of  the  Federal  Government.  Some  have  been 
elected  to  various  city  councils.  A  few  have  attained  mem- 
bership in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States.  Trade-union 
leadership  is,  as  Sidney  and  Beatrice  Webb  have  pointed  out, 
excellent  training  for  political  life.^^  Such  men  know  the 
needs  of  the  working  class  and  are  sometimes  well  fitted 
to  represent  them  in  state  and  Federal  legislatures.  If  a 
labor  party  shall  finally  emerge  in  the  United  States,  trade- 
union  leaders  will  probably  increase  in  political  prominence, 
and  their  influence  will  be  strongly  felt  in  the  shaping  of 
legislation. 

"Industrial  Democracy,  pp.  65-71. 


CHAPTER  XI 
THE    NATIONAL    EXECUTIVE    BOARD 

National  executive  boards  were  created  to  serve  as  a 
check  on  the  power  of  the  national  officers.  Prior  to  the 
panic  of  1873,  however,  no  such  executive  boards  existed 
in  any  of  the  more  important  national  associations.  To  be 
sure,  the  national  unions  of  Cigar  Makers^  and  Bricklayers- 
had  so-called  executive  committees,  but  these  committees 
were  composed  solely  of  national  officers.^  An  exception 
was  the  national  trade  association  of  hat  finishers.  The 
executive  board  of  this  association,  composed  of  eight  mem- 
bers— none  of  them  holding  any  other  office — exercised 
judicial  power  which  in  other  associations  would  have  been 
vested  in  the  president  or  other  national  officials.*  Another 
exception  was  the  Journeymen  Stone  Cutters'  Association, 
whose  committee  of  management,  composed  of  eight  mem- 
bers, was  elected  by  the  local  union  or  unions  in  the  city 
chosen  as  headquarters  of  the  association,  in  imitation  of 
the  English  system  of  the  governing  branch.  Since  the 
committee  of  management  was  vested  between  conventions 
with  all  judicial  and  all  executive  powers  requiring  the  ex- 
ercise of  much  discretion,  there  remained  for  the  one  sal- 
aried officer  only  purely  routine  secretarial  and  financial 
duties. 

In  the  other  associations  the  national  officers  were  wholly 

*  Constitution,  in  MS.  Proceedings  of  the  Fourth  Annual  Session 
of  the  Cigar  Makers*  International  Union,  Buffalo,  N.  Y.,  Septem- 
ber 2-6,  1867. 

'  Constitution,  1867. 

"  The  executive  committee  of  the  Cigar  Makers'  International 
Union  was  composed  in  1867  of  the  president,  vice-president,  sec- 
retary, and  treasurer.  In  the  Bricklayers'  and  Masons'  International 
Union  it  consisted  about  this  time  of  the  president,  vice-president, 
and  secretary. 

*  Constitution,  1863. 

186 


293]  THE    NATIONAL    EXIiCUTIVE    BOARD  1 8/ 

unchecked  by  any  higher  authority  ckiring  the  period  be- 
tween conventions.  Luckily  the  functions  of  the  federated 
unions  were  so  few  that  the  officers  had  very  little  oppor- 
tunity to  display  arbitrary  power.  But  the  functions  of 
the  national  unions  were  increasing  rapidly,  and  at  the 
same  time  duties  which  had  been  divided  among  several  un- 
paid officials  were  being  vested  in  a  single  salaried  officer. 
On  his  growing  absolutism  the  infrequent  conventions  ex- 
ercised little  restraint.  In  the  absence  of  a  general  execu- 
tive board,  therefore,  he  exercised  despotic  power,  never 
hesitating  even  to  overturn  the  old  rules  or  to  adopt  new 
ones  whenever  an  emergency  demanded  such  a  course  of 
action. 

After  1875  a  tendency  to  form  general  executive  boards 
became  manifest,  and  by  1880  such  boards  were  being  main- 
tained by  practically  all  existing  national  unions.  At  the 
same  time,  organizations  like  the  Cigar  Makers'  Interna- 
tional Union  were  enlarging  their  executive  boards  to  in- 
clude a  majority  of  other  than  paid  offixers.  The  paid  offi- 
cials who  had  ruled  so  long  with  unrestricted  powers  not  in- 
frequently made  stubborn  resistance  against  the  inaugura- 
tion of  a  policy  which  deprived  them  of  their  authority.  In 
the  International  Union  of  Machinists  and  Blacksmiths  a 
bitter  fight  was  fought  about  1874  between  the  president 
and  the  new  executive  board,  and  this  quarrel  may  have 
added  its  weight  to  the  existing  industrial  depression  in 
pushing  the  union  downhill  toward  the  utter  demoralization 
which  occurred  a  few  years  later. 

In  the  Iron  Molders'  Union  the  president  was  emphatic 
in  expressing  his  antagonism  toward  the  newly  created 
executive  board,  which  he  denounced  as  a  foreign  device 
utterly  alien  to  American  trade  unionism.  The  president, 
led  on  by  almost  unlimited  opportunity,  had  yielded  to  temp- 
tation, and  had  appropriated  some  of  the  funds.  One  of 
the  first  results  of  the  creation  of  the  executive  board  was 
the  discovery  of  this  malfeasance.  The  president  strove 
desperately  to  maintain  himself  in  power.  He  began  with 
the  declaration  that  he  would  not  be  the  clerk  of  any  board 


1 88  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [294 

or  committee.  Restricted  in  authority  by  the  new  govern- 
mental reorganization,  he  was  nevertheless  not  wholly  im- 
potent. His  chief  weapons  of  defense  were  power  to  expel 
from  the  organization  and  control  over  the  trade  journal. 
In  the  official  trade  journal  he  denounced  the  accusations 
made  against  him  as  libels  inspired  by  the  desire  of  his 
enemies  to  remove  him  from  office  and  secure  the  position 
for  a  rival.  He  refused  to  publish  any  statements  by  the 
other  side.  When  one  member  of  the  national  executive 
board  persuaded  his  local  union  to  publish  and  distribute  a 
circular  containing  a  statement  of  the  board's  position,  the 
president  suspended  the  local  society,  and  so  made  this  mem- 
ber ineligible  to  hold  office.  Several  members  of  the  board 
who  belonged  to  subordinate  branches  which  were  some- 
what remiss  in  the  payment  of  assessments  were  likewise 
rendered  ineligible  by  the  suspension  of  their  local  unions. 
Other  members  of  the  board  were  removed  from  office  on 
the  charge  of  failure  to  attend  to  their  duties.  The  efforts 
of  the  president  were  fruitless.  A  special  convention  was 
called,  and  this  convention  removed  him  from  office  and 
elected  his  successor.^ 

In  the  Cigar  Makers'  International  Union  friction  arose 
in  1883  between  the  president  and  the  executive  board  be- 
cause of  the  failure  of  the  constitution  to  define  carefully 
their  respective  powers.  Charges  of  overstepping  his  au- 
thority were  brought  against  the  president,  and  these  charges 
the  executive  board  proceeded  to  investigate.  The  president 
denied  the  right  of  the  board  to  do  so.  He  refused  to  ap- 
propriate the  money  necessary  for  the  investigation,  and, 
when  the  money  was  advanced  by  the  local  society  making 
the  charges,  he  refused  to  accept  the  decision.  A  careful  in- 
vestigation by  the  convention  was  necessary  before  the 
controversy  was  finally  settled.  At  the  same  time,  the  re- 
spective powers  of  the  president  and  of  the  board  were 
more  precisely  defined.^     The  executive  board  was  vested 

*  Iron   Holders'   Journal,    December    10,    1878,   January   10,    1879; 
Proceedings,  1879. 
•Proceedings,  1883. 


295]  THE    NATIONAL    EXECUTIVE    BOARD  1 89 

with  authority  to  try  accused  officers,  including  the  president, 
and  to  submit  their  findings  to  a  vote  of  all  the  members  of 
the  union. 

The  creation  of  the  executive  board  has  limited  greatly 
the  judicial  power  of  the  president.  In  more  than  fifty  of 
the  one  hundred  and  thirty  unions  he  possesses  no  judicial 
power.  Only  in  nine  organizations  can  he  discipline  the 
local  unions,^  such  authority  being  reserved  to  the  general 
executive  board.  To  prevent  the  board  from  wasting  its 
time  in  the  consideration  of  unimportant  complaints,  the 
president  is  frequently  given  authority  to  hear  appeals  of 
members  from  decisions  of  local  unions,  but  appeals  may 
nearly  always  be  made  from  any  of  his  judicial  decisions  to 
the  executive  board.  Very  frequently,  indeed,  the  board 
merely  confirms  the  judgment  of  the  president,  as  is  shown 
by  the  following  table  to  be  the  case  in  the  Cigar  Makers' 
International  Union : — 

Appeals  From  Decision  of  President  to  the  Executive  Board 
IN  THE  Cigar  Makers'  International  Union 


President's 

No.  of 

decision 

Years 

appeals 

overruled 

1883-1885 

21 

I 

1885-1887 

31 

I 

1887-1889 

57 

I 

1889-189I 

43 

0 

I 89 I- I 893 

48 

I 

1893-1895 

64 

0 

Nevertheless,  trade-union  officials  are  undoubtedly  influ- 
enced by  the  fear  of  having  their  judgments  overruled  by 
the  executive  board.  Extra  constitutional  legislative  power 
is  still  exercised  by  the  president  in  some  of  the  newer  as- 
sociations; indeed,  three  unions  definitely  authorize  that 
official  to  promulgate  rules  not  conflicting  with  the  constitu- 

^  The  president  is  permitted  to  discipline  the  local  societies  in  the 
following  unions :  Locomotive  Engineers,  Locomotive  Firemen  and 
Enginemen,  Maintenance-of-Way  Employees,  Railroad  Trainmen, 
Railway  Clerks,  Railway  Telegraphers,  Stationary  Engineers,  and 
Street  and  Electric  Railway  Employees. 


190  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [296 

tion.^  Many  associations,  on  the  other  hand,  take  away  his 
excuse  for  usurping  the  role  of  legislator  by  providing  for 
the  initiation  and  adoption  of  amendments  to  the  constitu- 
tion by  vote  of  the  members,  and  sixteen  unions  achieve 
the  same  result  by  vesting  the  executive  board  with  limited 
legislative  power.® 

The  executive  board  levies  assessments,  appoints  tempor- 
ary officers  to  fill  vacancies,  and  performs  other  duties 
which  were  vested  in  the  president  in  the  early  days  of  the 
older  organizations.  The  duty  of  declaring  strikes,  which 
none  of  the  older  organizations  ventured  to  entrust  to  the 
president,  has  been  delegated  to  the  executive  board  by  prac- 
tically all  unions  save  the  few  which  submit  this  question  to 
popular  vote.  Perhaps  the  most  important  function  of  the 
board  is  to  bring  to  trial  and  remove  officers  for  misde- 
meanors and  neglect  of  duty,  since  control  over  officers  de- 
pends so  largely  upon  the  ability  of  the  board  to  exercise 
this  power. 

The  executive  board  exercises  important  functions  in  aH 
save  fourteen  national  unions.  The  exceptions  are  the 
National  Association  of  Marine  Engineers,  the  Paving  Cut- 
ters' Union,  three  organizations  of  iron,  steel,  and  tin 
workers,^"  and  nine  unions  of  railway  employees.  The  sole 
function  of  the  executive  board  in  the  National  Association 
of  Marine  Engineers  is  to  declare  strikes,  and  in  the  Pav- 
ing Cutters'  Union  to  levy  assessments  and  discipline  the 

*  These  are  the  Railway  Expressmen,  Window  Glass  Workers,  and 
Window  Glass  Cutters  and  Flatteners. 

'  The  executive  board  can  enact  rules  not  conflicting  with  those 
already  passed  by  convention  in  the  following  national  unions :  Bill 
Posters  and  Billers,  Boot  and  Shoe  Makers,  Brick,  Tile,  and  Terra 
Gotta  Workers,  Brushmakers,  Fur  Workers,  Glass  House  Em- 
ployees, Glass  Workers,  Rubber  Workers,  Slate  Workers,  Theat- 
rical Stage  Employees,  and  Tip  Printers. 

The  Glass  Bottle  Blowers  permit  the  board  to  suspend  the  rules 
until  next  convention,  and  the  Leather  Workers  for  ninety  days. 

The  Flour  and  Cereal  Mill  Employees  give  the  board  of  man- 
agement authority  to  adopt  rules  governing  the  label;  the  Railway 
Clerks,  rules  relating  to  the  insurance  department;  and  the  Wood, 
Wire,  and  Metal  Lathers,  general  administrative  rules. 

^"  These  are  the  Iron,  Steel  and  Tin  Workers,  the  Blast  Furnace 
Workers  and  Smelters,  and  the  Tin  Plate  Workers. 


297]  THE    NATIONAL    EXECUTIVE    BOARD  I9I 

local  societies.  In  the  Tin  Plate  Workers'  International 
Protective  Association  the  only  definite  duty  of  the  executive 
board  is  to  levy  assessments.  In  the  other  two  unions  of 
iron,  steel,  and  tin  workers  the  board  has  no  definite  func- 
tions save  tlie  very  vague  one  of  advising  the  national  offi- 
cers on  matters  not  covered  by  the  rules.  In  five  of  the  nine 
railway  unions  the  board  may  bring  to  trial  and  remove  offi- 
cers, in  two  unions  it  exercises  a  very  limited  power  of 
appeal,  and  in  two  others  it  has  both  of  these  functions. 
Naturally,  the  power  of  the  president  is  larger  in  associa- 
tions where  the  executive  board  has  been  vested  with  very 
few  functions  than  in  those  where  the  contrary  is  found. 
This  is  true,  to  be  sure,  only  to  a  slight  extent  in  the  three 
unions  of  iron,  steel  and  tin  workers,  since  various  com- 
mittees of  the  district  unions  declare  strikes,  render  judicial 
decisions,  and  perform  functions  which  are  delegated  in 
other  organizations  to  the  executive  board.  In  the  remain- 
ing eleven  associations  the  president  is  very  powerful.  The 
secretary  of  the  Paving  Cutters'  Union  and  the  presidents 
of  the  various  railway  unions  thus  have  authority  to  deter- 
mine whether  local  societies  shall  be  permitted  to  strike  with 
the  financial  support  of  the  federal  organization, — a  power 
which  was  not  wielded  by  despotic  officials  of  the  Iron 
Molders'  Union  and  other  long  established  associations  even 
in  the  early  days.  Again,  in  seven  of  the  nine  railway 
unions  the  finality  of  the  president's  judicial  authority  is 
undoubtedly  much  increased  by  denying  the  right  of  appeal 
to  the  executive  board  from  all  or  most  of  his  decisions.^^ 
During  the  weeks  until  the  next  convention  his  decision  must 
be  accepted  as  final.  Appeals  are  also  apt  to  be  less  fre- 
quent, since  by  the  time  the  delegate  assembly  convenes 
the  dispute  may  have  been  forgotten,  or  changed  conditions 
may  have  rendered  a  reversal  of  the  decision  useless.  In 
nine  associations  the  executive  board  is  composed  wholly  or 

"  Four  unions  permit  no  appeal  to  the  executive  board  from  any 
of  the  president's  decisions,  and  three  others  only  from  certain 
important  decisions,  such  as  suspension  of  a  local  society  or  a 
judgment  on  some  question  not  covered  by  the  rules. 


192  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [298 

in  large  part  of  salaried  officials  who  are  stationed  at  head- 
quarters and  work  together  daily  in  close  relationship. 
Hence  the  board  fails  of  its  chief  purpose,  namely,  to  re- 
strict the  power  of  such  paid  officials  during  the  period 
between  conventions. 

Undoubtedly,  the  salaried  officers  with  their  detailed  and 
intimate  knowledge  of  the  affairs  of  the  organization  should 
take  part  in  the  deliberations  of  the  executive  committee,  and 
perhaps  should  even  cast  a  vote,^^  but  surely  they  should 
not  predominate  on  this  committee.  Nevertheless,  the 
Bricklayers'  and  Masons'  International  Union,  as  at  the 
beginning  of  its  history,  permits  the  president,  the  first  vice- 
president,  and  the  secretary  to  render  joint  judicial  decisions 
and  to  exercise  wide  administrative  powers,  including  the 
authority  even  to  declare  strikes.  The  Printers  vest  similar 
authority  in  the  paid  official  staff  composed  of  the  president, 
the  secretary-treasurer,  and  the  two  vice-presidents.  In  the 
unions  of  five  other  trades  the  officers,  exclusive  of  the 
vice-presidents,  predominate  on  the  board,^^  and  in  the 
Coopers  and  Lace  Operatives  the  board  consists  of  an 
equal  number  of  salaried  officials  and  non-salaried  members. 
Moreover,  even  when  they  receive  no  salary,  the  members  of 
the  executive  board  are  frequently  selected  for  special  service 
by  the  president,  so  that  the  chief  executive  has  the  oppor- 
tunity to  create  a  coterie  of  adherents  by  letting  fall  the 
plums  to  those  who  favor  his  policies. 

Meetings  of  the  executive  committee  are  held  infrequently 
because  of  the  expense  of  bringing  together  its  members, 
who  are  usually  scattered  about  in  various  parts  of  the 
country.     Regular  meetings  of  the  board  are  held  by  only 

"The  unions  of  carpenters  and  joiners,  glass  workers,  tailors, 
and  window  glass  cutters  and  flatteners  permit  one  or  more  of  the 
paid  officials  to  be  present  at  meetings  of  the  executive  board  and 
take  part  in  the  deliberations,  but  to  cast  no  vote. 

^'In  the  Elastic  Goring  Weavers  the  board  consists  of  the  presi- 
dent, secretary,  and  one  other;  in  the  Post  Office  Clerks,  it  is  com- 
posed of  the  president,  secretary,  treasurer,  and  one  other;  and  in 
the  Leather  Workers  on  Horse  Goods,  Pen  and  Pocket-Knife 
Grinders,  Shipwrights,  Joiners,  Caulkers  and  Boat  Builders,  of 
three  officers  and  two  others. 


299]  "^^^    NATIONAL    EXECUTIVE    BOARD  I93 

eighteen  of  the  one  hundred  and  thirty  unions, — annually  by 
ten,  semi-annually  by  three,  and  quarterly  by  five.  In  the 
other  organizations  the  board  may  be  called  together  in  a 
serious  emergency  at  the  discretion  of  the  president  or  on 
demand  of  the  members  of  the  local  unions. 

The  executive  committee  transacts  much  of  its  business 
by  mail  or  telegraph.  A  few  organizations  impose  fines  on 
members  of  the  board  for  failure  to  telegraph  their  decisions 
on  strike  applications  within  twenty-four  hours.  Never- 
theless, this  method  of  transacting  business  causes  some 
delay.  It  likewise  handicaps  the  board  in  giving  intelligent 
judgments,  since  its  members  have  no  opportunity  to  discuss 
with  one  another  the  various  phases  of  the  problems  under 
consideration.  Moreover,  the  board  must  depend  largely 
on  the  paid  officers  for  information  concerning  questions 
submitted  for  its  decision,  and  hence  it  is  limited  in  its 
ability  to  check  the  absorption  of  power  by  such  officials. 

A  few  unions  have  sought  a  solution  of  this  difficulty  by 
the  adoption  of  the  English  system  of  the  governing  branch. 
Under  this  form  of  government  a  certain  place  is  chosen  as 
the  headquarters  of  the  organization;  then  the  local  union 
or  unions  at  headquarters  select  certain  of  their  own  mem- 
bers to  constitute  the  general  board  of  management.  A  paid 
official,  known  as  the  secretary  or  secretary-treasurer,  is 
elected  by  vote  of  all  the  members  of  the  national  union. 
This  offtcer  has  merely  routine  secretarial  and  financial 
duties.  The  board  meets  weekly  or  oftener,  and  trans- 
acts much  business  that  in  other  organizations  is  performed 
by  the  salaried  officials. 

The  system  of  the  governing  branch  is,  however,  un- 
popular among  the  American  unions.  Only  six  associa- 
tions have  copied  the  exact  form  as  it  exists  in  the  English 
societies.  Some  have  experimented  with  the  system  and 
have  subsequently  abandoned  it;  a  few  have  adopted  it  in 
some  modified  form.  In  four  unions  the  members  of  the 
board  of  management  are  selected  from  local  societies  within 
a  radius  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  to  three  hundred  miles 
13 


194  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [3OO 

from  headquarters.  In  the  Bakers  and  the  Brewery  Work- 
men part  of  the  board  are  selected  by  the  branches  at  head- 
quarters, but  a  majority  of  them  are  chosen  by  convention 
from  local  societies  in  various  parts  of  the  country.  The 
quorum  living  at  headquarters  meets  at  least  once  every  two 
weeks.  The  matters  of  business  on  which  it  renders  an 
opinion  are  submitted  to  the  outside  members,  and  the  final 
decision  is  announced  at  the  following  meeting. 

The  wide  territorial  jurisdiction  of  American  unions  and 
the  great  conflict  of  sectional  interests  have  made  the  system 
of  the  governing  branch  impracticable.  For  example,  the 
Carpenters  and  Joiners,  who  adopted  the  system  in  1884, 
abandoned  it  six  years  later  because  the  local  societies  in 
the  various  sections  of  the  country  refused  to  be  dominated 
by  the  members  in  one  city."  Nor  have  the  modifications 
of  the  system  been  wholly  successful.  In  those  organiza- 
tions where  the  members  have  been  selected  from  local 
unions  within  one  hundred  and  fifty  to  three  hundred  miles 
from  headquarters  the  board,  while  it  is  less  liable  to  be  influ- 
enced by  local  interests,  meets  less  frequently,  that  is,  only 
once  a  month.  The  outside  members  of  the  executive  board 
in  the  United  Brewery  Workmen  are  at  a  disadvantage  as 
regards  those  at  headquarters,  and  have  been  called  at  times 
the  "fifth  wheel  on  the  coach"  or  "the  tail  of  the  kite." 
At  times  the  members  of  the  board  who  constitute  the 
quorum  at  headquarters  have  used  their  power  to  further 
local  interests.  On  one  occasion  the  quorum  in  the  United 
Brewery  Workmen  voted  to  continue  the  payment  of  strike 
benefits  to  the  unemployed  members  of  a  local  society  at 
headquarters  long  after  the  strike  was  technically  over  and 
their  places  had  been  filled  by  the  employers.  The  outside 
members  at  last  protested,  and  insisted  that  the  local  union 
at  headquarters  should  be  required  to  support  its  unem- 
ployed from  its  own  funds,  as  any  other  local  society  would 
have  been  compelled  to  do  long  before. 

"  Report  of  the  Secretary  to  Convention,  and  Constitution  as 
amended  in  1884,  in  The  Carpenter,  August,  1884;  see  also  The 
Carpenter,  January,  1891. 


30 1  ]  THE    NATIONAL    EXECUTIVE    BOARD  1 95 

The  members  in  each  section  of  the  country  and  in  each 
division  of  the  trade  demand  representation  on  the  execu- 
tive board.  About  twenty  associations  require  that  each 
of  the  several  districts  into  which  their  territorial  jurisdic- 
tion is  divided  be  represented  on  the  executive  committee. 
Each  member  of  the  board  is  then  the  official  head  of  his 
district.  Canada  usually  constitutes  one  of  these  districts, 
and  a  few  organizations  making  no  other  provision  for  sec- 
tional representation  permit  the  Canadian  local  unions  to 
have  one  of  their  fellow-countrymen  on  the  board.  Other 
national  unions  provide  that  no  two  members  of  the  board 
must  be  from  the  same  city  or  even  from  the  same  State  or 
province.  Sometimes  national  unions  composed  of  only 
a  few  local  societies,  such  as  those  of  cutting  die  and  cutter 
makers,  sawsmiths,  and  a  few  other  very  small  trades,  per- 
mit each  local  union  to  have  one  member  on  the  executive 
board.  In  these  small  organizations  the  executive  commit- 
tee sometimes  takes  the  place  of  the  convention.  Fourteen 
unions,  four  of  them  included  in  the  twenty  that  provide 
for  territorial  representation,  require  that  the  members  of 
the  board  must  be  chosen  from  each  of  the  several  branches 
of  the  trade.  The  majority  of  unions  object,  however,  to 
the  adoption  of  any  iron-clad  rule  on  the  ground  that  it 
limits  them  in  the  choice  of  efficient  men.  The  officials  of 
such  associations  declare  that  an  effort  is  nearly  always 
made  to  give  representation  to  the  different  sections  of  the 
country  and  to  the  various  branches  of  trade. 


CHAPTER  XII 

THE  INITIATIVE   AND   THE   REFERENDUM 

Originally,  as  has  already  been  noted,  the  national  trade 
unions  elected  officers  and  transacted  all  other  business — 
executive,  legislative  and  judicial — through  the  convention 
of  delegates.  A  number  of  national  unions  still  continue  to 
vest  such  unlimited,  wide-reaching  powers  in  this  repre- 
sentative assembly,  but  the  great  majority  of  them  have 
limited  its  power  to  a  greater  or  less  extent  by  the  use  of 
the  initiative  and  referendum.  The  trade  unions  submit  a 
far  wider  variety  of  business  to  popular  vote  than  do  polit- 
ical governments.  By  this  method  they  elect  officers,  adopt 
rules,  declare  strikes,  levy  assessments,  render  judicial 
decisions,  and  transact  other  business.  In  a  few  organiza- 
tions the  convention  has  been  abolished,  and  all  questions 
are  determined  by  the  vote  of  the  members. 

The  right  of  popular  initiative  exists  in  American  trade 
unions  only  in  a  modified  sense.  A  member,  for  example, 
may  propose  any  amendment  to  the  international  constitu- 
tion at  a  meeting  of  his  local  union,  but  his  proposal  must 
be  endorsed  by  at  least  a  majority  of  the  members  in  his 
own  branch,  must  be  signed  by  the  local  officers,  and  must 
have  the  seal  of  the  subordinate  union  attached  before  it 
can  be  recognized  at  headquarters.  Then  it  must  be  endorsed 
by  the  general  executive  board  or  by  a  certain  number  of 
other  branches  before  it  can  be  submitted  to  popular  vote. 
In  other  words,  the  local  unions,  not  the  members  in  their 
individual  capacity,  have  the  right  to  propose  legislation. 
The  general  executive  board  has  an  equal  right  with  the 
local  societies  in  nearly  all  cases  to  submit  measures  to  the 
referendum.     Indeed,   in   some   eight   unions   the   general 

ig6 


303]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  1 97 

executive  board  alone  may  exercise  this  privilege.  The 
subordinate  unions  have  no  right  of  initiative.^ 

The  organs  of  discussion  and  deliberation  are  the  trade 
journal,  special  circulars,  and  the  local  mass-meetings.  A 
measure  proposed  by  a  local  union  is  stated  in  the  journal 
or  in  a  circular  to  each  branch ;  then  the  question  is  dis- 
cussed in  the  local  meetings  and  perhaps  in  the  columns  of 
the  journal.  As  a  rule,  the  members  vote  on  matters  relat- 
ing to  the  national  organization  at  a  regular  meeting  of  the 
subordinate  union,  often  without  secrecy,  in  the  same  way 
as  on  purely  local  measures.  Exception  is  usually  made  in 
the  election  of  officers,  when  all  the  paraphernalia  of  the 
Australian  ballot  system  now  so  familiar  to  Americans  are 
used.2  Ballots  are  printed  by  the  international  union,  and 
an  inspector  and  subinspectors  are  elected  by  each  local 
society.  On  a  certain  day  the  polls  are  kept  open,  sometimes 
for  six  hours.  The  inspectors  count  the  ballots,  and  make 
returns  to  the  general  canvassing  board,  which  adds  up  the 
votes  and  announces  the  result.^ 

The  historical  development  of  the  referendum  in  Amer- 
ican unions  presents  a  sharp  contrast  to  that  of  the  British 
unions,  as  outlined  by  Sidney  and  Beatrice  Webb.  Accord- 
ing to  them,  in  the  British  unions  during  the  early  period 
from  1824  to  1870  the  congress  of  elected  representatives 
"  either  found  no  place  at  all  or  else  was  called  together  only 
at  long  intervals  and  for  strictly  limited  purposes."  The 
supreme  authority  was  the  "voices"  of  all  concerned,  and 
to  this  authority  was  referred  "  every  proposition  not  covered 
by  the  original  articles  together  with  all  questions  of  peace 
and  war."     Experience  with  the   referendum   soon  made 


^  The  general  executive  board  alone  has  power  to  initiate  legisla- 
tion in  the  following  unions:  Actors,  Bookbinders,  Ceramic,  Mosaic 
and  Encaustic  Tile  Layers,  Elevator  Constructors,  Hatters,  Painters, 
Decorators  and  Paper  Hangers,  Tin  Plate  Workers,  and  Theatrical 
Stage  Employees. 

^  The  unions  are  said  to  have  used  the  Australian  ballot  system 
before  it  was  adopted  by  the  state  and  municipal  governments  in  the 
United  States. 

*  For  example,  see  Constitution  of  the  Cigar  Makers'  International 
Union,  1896,  fourteenth  edition,  sees.  11-42. 


198  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [3O4 

obvious  its  disadvantages,  and  after  1870  there  was  a  reac- 
tion. The  use  of  the  referendum  was  hmited  in  a  number 
of  unions,  the  branches  being  sometimes  allowed  to  submit 
amendments  only  once  every  year  or,  perhaps,  only  once  in 
ten  years.  In  a  few  organizations  the  system  was  wholly 
abolished.  "Thus  we  see,"  say  the  Webbs,  "that  half  a 
century  of  practical  experience  with  the  initiative  and  refer- 
endum has  led  not  to  its  extension  but  to  an  ever  stricter 
limitation  of  its  application."* 

The  experience  of  the  American  unions  has  been  exactly 
the  reverse.  The  American  workmen,  perhaps  because  of 
their  political  environment,  seemed  attached  to  the  repre- 
sentative form  of  government  during  the  early  years.  They 
adopted  the  referendum  slowly  and  apparently  with  great 
reluctance.  The  national  associations  of  printers,  hat  finish- 
ers, iron  molders,  and  iron  and  steel  workers,  formed  prior 
to  the  Civil  War,  made  no  attempt  for  many  years  to  use 
the  initiative  and  referendum,  and  some  of  them  have  only 
very  recently  adopted  the  system.  The  one  exception  was 
the  Stone  Cutters,  who,  in  borrowing  the  constitution  of 
their  English  fellow-craftsmen,  copied  among  other  features 
of  the  English  societies  the  method  of  legislating  by  popular 
vote.**  After  1875  the  Iron  Holders"  and  the  Cigar  Makers 
began  experimenting  with  the  referendum.  About  1875  the 
Miners'  National  Association  was  submitting  amendments 
adopted  by  convention  to  a  vote  of  the  local  lodges.''^  The 
Granite  Cutters,  who  copied  the  constitution  of  the  Stone 
Cutters,  ceased  to  hold  conventions  almost  immediately 
after  the  formation  of  their  national  union  in  1877,  and 
began  to  refer  all  matters  to  a  vote  of  the  members. 

By  1880  the  idea  of  transacting  business  by  popular  vote 
had  become  familiar  to  American  trade  unionists.  Since 
that  date  the  system  has  been  adopted  by  most  of  the  older 
organizations,  and  has  been  copied  from  them  by  many  of 
the  newer  unions.    It  is  now  used  for  a  widely  varying  num- 

*Pp.  13-26. 

"Circular,  April,  May,  1858. 

'  Constitution.  1876. 

^  National  Labor  Tribune,  October  30,  1874. 


305]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  1 99 

ber  of  purposes  by  ninety-five  out  of  one  hundred  and  thirty 
national  and  international  associations.  It  has  also  been 
used  occasionally  by  the  Bricklayers  and  other  unions  which 
do  not  make  definite  provision  for  it,  in  order  to  pass  on 
measures  needing  immediate  consideration  during  the  period 
between  conventions.^ 

When  first  introduced,  the  referendum  has  usually  been 
employed  by  an  organization  for  a  very  restricted  number 
of  purposes.  As  the  members  have  grown  accustomed  to 
direct  selfgovernment,  its  use  has  almost  invariably  been 
extended,  until  in  a  few  national  unions  the  convention  has 
been  abolished,  and  all  business  is  transacted  by  popular 
vote.  This  gradual  replacement  of  the  representative  by  the 
democratic  form  of  government  is  well  illustrated  by  the 
experience  of  the  Cigar  Makers'  International  Union.  About 
1875,  eleven  years  after  the  founding  of  the  organization, 
a  rule  was  adopted  permitting  local  societies  to  propose  con- 
stitutional amendments,  which  after  publication  and  discus- 
sion in  the  journal  of  the  union  were  submitted  to  refer- 
endum vote.  Two  years  later  it  was  enacted  that  no 
measures  passed  by  the  convention  should  go  into  effect 
until  ratified  by  a  majority  of  the  local  societies.  In  1879 
the  policy  of  submitting  application  for  strike  benefits  to 
the  subordinate  unions  was  inaugurated.  In  1884  the  mem- 
bers and  the  local  unions  were  allowed  to  appeal  from 
judicial  decisions  of  the  executive  board  to  a  vote  of  the 
membership.  Finally,  the  system  of  electing  officers  by 
popular  vote  was  established  in  1891.®  Conventions,  which 
at  first  were  held  annually,  were  later  held  only  biennially, 
then  triennially,  and  since  1896  have  been  wholly  discon- 
tinued. 

The  initiative  and  referendum  are  most  commonly  em- 
ployed to  adopt  amendments  to  the  constitution.  They  are 
so  employed  by  about  seventy  of  the  one  hundred  and  thirty 

•President's  Annual  Address,  in  Proceedings  of  the  Bricklayers' 
and  Masons'  International  Union,  1876,  p.  6;  Proceedings,  1877,  pp. 
13-14,  19.  22;  Report  of  the  Secretary,  in  Proceedings,  1884. 

'See  Constitutions,  1879,  1884,  1891. 


200  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [306 

national  unions  studied.  Some  fifteen  organizations/"  all 
with  one  exception^^  included  in  these  seventy  unions,  provide 
that  all  amendments  adopted  by  convention  must  be  referred 
for  ratification  to  popular  vote.  The  Printing  Pressmen 
require  the  submission  of  measures  involving  an  increase  of 
dues,  and  the  Ladies'  Garment  Workers  of  all  direct  pro- 
posals to  increase  dues.  Particular  measures  adopted  by 
convention  must  be  submitted  to  the  members  at  the  request 
of  a  fixed  number  of  local  societies  in  the  national  unions 
of  Letter  Carriers  and  Slate,  Tile  and  Tin  Roofers.^^  The 
Letter  Carriers,  Brewery  Workmen,  and  Wood  Carvers  give 
the  convention  discretionary  power  to  refer  an  amendment 
or  resolution  to  popular  vote  whenever  they  deem  it  expedi- 
ent. Without  such  special  authorization,  the  conventions  of 
many  other  associations  pursue  this  policy  whenever  they 
do  not  desire  to  assume  responsibility  for  the  passage  of  a 
certain  measure. 

Though  a  few  American  unions  employed  the  strike 
referendum  at  an  earlier  date  than  the  legislative  referen- 
dum, applications  for  strike  benefits  are  now  submitted  to 
a  vote  of  the  members  by  only  twenty-one  organizations, 
less  than  one  sixth  of  the  national  unions  studied  and  less 
than  one  third  of  the  number  legislating  by  popular  vote.  In 
thirteen  of  these  twenty-one  organizations  all  strike  applica- 
tions are  first  referred  to  the  executive  board;  then,  if  the 
local  union  making  the  application  is  dissatisfied  with  the 
decision  of  the  board,  it  is  referred  to  a  vote  of  the  members. 
Four  unions  submit  strike  applications  involving  more  than 
a  certain  number  of  members  to  popular  vote,  and  less 

^^  These  unions  are  as  follows :  Actors,  Bridge  and  Structural  Iron 
Workers,  United  Brotherhood  of  Carpenters  and  Joiners,  Carriage 
and  Wagon  Workers,  Cloth  Hat  and  Cap  Makers,  Cigar  Makers, 
Garment  Workers,  Western  Federation  of  Miners,  Pattern  Makers, 
Piano,  Organ,  and  Musical  Instrument  Workers,  Shirt,  Waist  and 
Laundry  Workers,  Tailors,  Tobacco  Workers,  and  Woodsmen  and 
Saw  Mill  Workers. 

"  The  exception  is  the  Western  Federation  of  Miners. 

"  The  Letter  Carriers  submit  measures  adopted  by  convention  to 
popular  vote  at  the  request  of  ten  branches,  aggregating  fifty  or 
more  members,  and  the  Slate,  Tile  and  Tin  Roofers  on  demand  of 
two  local  unions. 


307] 


THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  20I 


important  ones  to  the  executive  board ;  but  in  three  of  them, 
dissatisfied  local  societies  may  appeal  from  decisions  of  the 
board  to  popular  vote.  Four  organizations  submit  all  strike 
applications  to  the  referendum. ^^ 

In  thirty-four  unions  the  general  membership  constitutes 
a  supreme  court  to  which  local  unions  can  appeal  from  decis- 
ions of  the  general  executive  board.  This  right  of  appeal 
is  accorded  only  to  local  societies  in  nine  unions"  and  only 
to  impeached  national  officers  in  fourteen  others.^''  Eleven 
organizations  permit  both  local  societies  and  impeached 
officers  to  appeal  their  cases  to  this  popular  tribunal.^"  Usu- 
ally the  national  executive  board  is  the  highest  court  to 
which  an  individual  member  can  refer  his  case,  though  in 
four  of  the  above  unions  individual  members  as  well  as  local 
societies  may  appeal  to  the  popular  vote.^^ 

"The  following  unions  permit  appeals  from  decisions  of  the 
executive  board  on  strike  applications :  Actors,  Broom  and  Whisk 
Makers,  Ceramic,  Mosaic  and  Encaustic  Tile  Layers,  Cloth  Hat  and 
Cap  Makers,  Coopers,  Garment  Workers,  Glass  Workers,  Ladies' 
Garment  Workers,  Leather  Workers  on  Horse  Goods,  Painters, 
Decorators  and  Paper  Hangers,  Shirt,  Waist  and  Laundry  Work- 
ers, Street  and  Electric  Railway  Employees,  and  Tailors. 

The  following  refer  applications  involving  more  than  a  certain 
number  of  members  directly  to  popular  vote,  and  those  involving 
less  to  the  executive  board:  Cigar  Makers,  Piano,  Organ  and 
Musical  Instrument  Workers,  Tobacco  Workers,  and  Wood  Carvers. 
All  except  the  Wood  Carvers  permit  appeals  from  the  executive 
board  to  popular  vote. 

The  following  submit  all  strike  applications  to  the  referendum : 
Blacksmiths,  Flint  Glass  Workers,  Marble  Workers,  and  Stone 
Cutters. 

"These  are  the  following  unions:  Actors,  Bakers,  Blacksmiths, 
Carriage  and  Wagon  Workers,  Electrical  Workers,  Metal  Polishers, 
Retail  Clerks,  Steam  Engineers,  and  Tobacco  Workers. 

"These  are  the  following  unions:  Carpenters,  Flint  Glass  Work- 
ers, Interior  Freight  Handlers  and  Warehousemen,  Iron  Molders. 
Ladies'  Garment  Workers,  Leather  Workers,  Lithographers,  Long- 
shoremen, Pilots,  Quarry  Workers,  Railway  Clerks,  Sheet  Metal 
Workers  (only  the  general  secretary-treasurer  may  so  appeal), 
Shirt,  Waist  and  Laundry  Workers,  and  Street  and  Electric  Rail- 
way Employees. 

"  These  are  the  following  unions :  Broom  and  Whisk  Makers, 
Cigar  Makers,  Glass  Workers,  Pattern  Makers,  Paper  Box  Work- 
ers, Painters,  Decorators  and  Paper  Hangers,  Paving  Cutters, 
Piano.  Organ  and  Musical  Instrument  Workers,  Travellers'  Goods 
and  Leather  Novelty  Workers,  Window  Glass  Cutters  and  Flatten- 
ers,  and  Woodsmen  and  Saw  Mill  Workers. 

"  These  are  the  following  unions :  Blacksmiths,  Pattern  Makers, 
Piano,  Organ  and  Musical  Instrument  Workers,  and  Metal  Polishers. 


202  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [308 

The  American  unions  have  been  slow  to  adopt  the  method 
of  electing  officers  by  popular  vote.  Popular  elections  were 
indeed  not  held  save  by  the  Stone  Cutters,  the  Granite  Cut- 
ters, and  perhaps  one  or  two  other  trades  until  after  1890. 
Only  eighteen  organizations  now  elect  officers  by  popular 
vote.^®  Assessments  are  levied  by  popular  vote  by  the  Bar- 
bers, Qiain  Makers,  Glass  Bottle  Blowers,  Lace  Operatives, 
Letter  Carriers,  Paper  Box  Workers,  and  Woodsmen  and 
Saw  Mill  Workers.  Ten  organizations  permit  any  ques- 
tion the  consideration  of  which  cannot  be  conveniently 
postponed  to  the  next  convention  to  be  submitted  to  the 
members  at  the  request  of  the  executive  board  or  of  a  speci- 
fied minimum  number  of  local  societies.^^ 

The  American  unions  have  used  the  initiative  and  refer- 
endum much  less  extensively  than  have  the  British  trade 
unions.  In  Great  Britain,  unions  such  as  the  Amalgamated 
Association  of  Operative  Cotton  Spinners  and  the  Miners' 
Federation  of  Great  Britain,  which  transact  their  business 
solely  through  a  representative  body,  are  notable  exceptions. 
In  America  at  least  thirty-five  national  unions  out  of  about 
one  hundred  and  thirty  do  not  make  use  of  the  referendum. 
These  thirty-five  unions  are  nearly  all  small  and  unimportant, 
however,  and  most  of  them  have  been  recently  organized. 
In  Great  Britain  nearly  all  the  unions  have  abolished  the 
system  of  holding  conventions  at  regular  intervals,  and 
transact  all  business  by  vote  of  the  members.  In  America 
this  extreme  policy  is  pursued  by  only  a  few  organizations. 

"  The  following  unions  permit  local  societies  to  nominate  candi- 
dates, and  the  election  is  by  popular  vote:  Boiler  Makers  and  Iron 
Shipbuilders,  Boot  and  Shoe  Workers,  Brick,  Tile  and  Terra  Cotta 
Workers,  Carriage  and  Wagon  Workers,  Cigar  Makers,  Leather 
Workers  on  Horse  Goods,  Lace  Operatives,  Machinists,  Metal 
Polishers,  Metal  Mechanics,  Metal  Workers,  Mine  Workers,  Pattern 
Makers,  Retail  Clerks,  Printers,  Stone  Cutters,  Tobacco  Workers, 
and  Woodsmen  and  Saw  Mill  Workers. 

In  the  Brewery  Workmen,  Carpenters,  and  Glass  Workers,  officers 
are  nominated  by  the  convention  and  elected  by  popular  vote. 

"  These  are  the  following  unions :  Bakers  and  Confectionery 
Workers,  Brewery  Workmen,  Bridge  and  Structural  Iron  Workers, 
Cloth  Hat  and  Cap  Makers,  Garment  Workers,  Lithographers, 
Meat  Cutters  and  Butcher  Workmen,  Western  Federation  of 
Miners,  Printers,  and  Window  Glass  Workers. 


309]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  2O3 

No  convention  has  been  called  by  the  Granite  Cutters  since 
1880,  three  years  after  the  formation  of  the  organization. 
The  Cigar  Makers  have  not  held  a  convention  since  1896. 
The  Paving  Cutters  make  no  mention  of  a  convention  in 
their  constitution  and  the  Stone  Cutters  refer  to  it  only 
incidentally.  Some  five  other  associations  call  a  convention 
only  when  the  popular  vote  has  so  ordered.^"  Another 
group  submits  to  the  referendum  at  regular  intervals  the 
question :  "  Shall  a  convention  be  held  this  year  ?  "  Some- 
times the  meeting  of  the  representative  body  is  postponed 
by  vote  of  the  members  year  after  year.  But  the  represen- 
tative assembly  is  still  convoked  periodically  in  the  great 
majority  of  American  unions,  and  the  initiative  and  refer- 
endum are  used  chiefly  to  supplement  the  work  of  the  dele- 
gates during  the  time  when  convention  is  not  in  session. 


Sidney  and  Beatrice  Webb  have  attributed  the  adoption  of 
the  system  of  the  initiative  and  referendum  by  British  trade 
unionists  to  a  dominant  desire  on  purely  theoretical  or  even 
sentimental  grounds  for  direct  government  by  the  members. 
The  British  trade  unionists,  they  declare,  have  possessed  the 
most  childlike  faith,  not  only  that  all  men  are  equal,  but 
also  that  what  concerns  all  should  be  decided  by  all.  Like 
the  citizens  of  Uri  or  Appenzell,  they  have  been  slow  to 
recognize  any  other  authority  than  the  voices  of  all  con- 
cerned.^^ In  their  early  local  organizations  the  members 
strove  to  transact  all  business  at  the  general  meeting,  and 
grudgingly  delegated  any  functions  either  to  officers  or  to 
committees.  When  such  delegation  of  duties  became  nec- 
essary, they  sought  by  short  terms  of  service  and  by  rota- 
tion in  office  to  prevent  the  assumption  of  undue  power  and 
authority  by  particular  members.  After  the  national  asso- 
ciations were  formed,  the  same  ideal  of  democracy  soon  led 
to  the  abandonment  of  representative  conventions,  to  the 

^°  These  unions  are  as  follows :  Lace  Operatives,  Metal  Polishers, 
Pattern  Makers,  Quarry  Workers,  and  Tobacco  Workers. 
"Pp.  3,  8. 


204  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [3IO 

election  of  permanent  salaried  officers  by  popular  vote,  and 
to  the  transaction  of  all  business  by  means  of  the  initiative 
and  referendum. 

The  American  workmen  have  not  adopted  the  initiative 
and  referendum  because  of  that  innate  love  of  democracy  to 
which  Sidney  and  Beatrice  Webb  have  ascribed  the  adoption 
of  the  referendum  by  British  trade  unions.  James  Bryce,  in 
his  American  Commonwealth,  has  said,  "  The  Americans 
have  not  a  theory  of  the  state,  have  felt  no  need  for  one, 
being  content,  like  the  English,  to  base  their  constitutional 
ideas  upon  law  and  history."  But  they  have  had,  he  thinks, 
certain  "  ground  ideas,"  certain  "  dogmas  and  maxims,"  and 
chief  among  these  is  the  political  axiom  that  "  the  most  com- 
pletely popular  government  is  the  best."  So  it  has  been 
with  the  American  trade  unionists.  Probably  at  no  time  in 
the  history  of  American  unions  would  the  members  have 
denied,  if  asked,  the  eminent  desirability  of  a  more  popular 
form  of  government,  yet  they  have  seldom  urged  for  this 
reason  the  adoption  of  the  initiative  and  referendum.  The 
official  journal  of  the  Cigar  Makers,  during  the  period  when 
the  movement  toward  a  wider  use  of  direct  government  was 
in  full  force,  contained  no  idealization,  no  discussion  even, 
of  the  fundamental  necessity  of  allowing  the  members  to 
govern  themselves  directly. 

In  other  trades  such  arguments  have  been  occasionally 
used.  A  writer  in  an  early  journal  of  the  United  Brother- 
hood of  Carpenters  and  Joiners,  in  speaking  of  the  referen- 
dum, declared :  "  It  gives  each  member  his  full  voice  in  the 
affairs  of  the  Brotherhood.  It  allows  the  members  to  rule 
and  does  away  with  the  autocratic  power  of  the  delegates; 
it  consults  the  judgment  of  every  member,  and  gives  us  the 
ripest  and  best  legislation.  This  principle  of  general  vote 
is  truly  democratic  in  the  proper  sense  of  the  terms.""-  An- 
other writer  in  the  same  journal  said:  "The  initiative  and 
referendum  is  an  excellent  means  to  inform  members  thor- 
oughly of  all  the  workings  of  our  organization.     Any  trade 

""  The  Carpenter,  May,  1883. 


3Il]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  205 

which  does  not  recognize  this  is  doomed  to  destruction.  Au- 
tocracy is  bound  to  fall  before  the  desire  of  the  people  to 
rule  themselves."  Yet  such  statements  are  rarely  made  save 
to  supplement  and  bolster  up  other  weightier  arguments  in 
favor  of  the  referendum.  Furthermore,  when  the  referen- 
dum was  originally  adopted  by  some  of  the  older  organiza- 
tions, its  form  was  not  truly  democratic,  since  each  local 
union  was  allowed  one  vote  irrespective  of  its  size.  This 
method  of  voting  was  advocated  by  the  small  local  unions, 
who  were  always  fearful  of  being  dominated  by  the  large 
societies.  Only  after  a  long  struggle  were  the  proposals  to 
cast  the  vote  according  to  membership  crowned  with  success. 
Under  such  a  system  a  minority  of  the  members  can 
easily  outvote  the  majority.  In  the  early  days  of  the  Iron 
Holders'  Union  the  president,  writing  in  the  journal  con- 
cerning the  injustice  of  this  method,  declared:  "The  pres- 
ent law  provides  that  if  one  third  of  the  unions  do  not  vote 
in  the  negative  when  a  strike  circular  is  issued,  the  strike 
shall  be  authorized.  This  law  would  be  fair  if  each  local 
had  the  same  number  of  members ;  but  the  fact  is  that  one- 
third  of  our  unions  contain  over  two-thirds  of  our  members. 
Almost  one-third  of  the  unions  may  vote  against  the  strike, 
yet  the  remaining  two-thirds,  comprising  only  one-third  of 
the  membership,  can  authorize  a  strike  and  compel  the  other 
two-thirds  of  the  members  to  support  it.  Thus  the  minority 
can  rule  the  majority."-^  Domination  by  the  minority  was 
similarly  possible  for  some  years  in  the  Cigar  Makers'  In- 
ternational Union.  In  1883,  at  a  time  when  each  society 
was  allowed  one  vote  on  matters  submitted  to  referendum, 
one  hundred  and  forty-three  of  the  one  hundred  and  sixty- 
four  local  unions  composing  the  International  Union  con- 
tained a  minority  of  the  membership.-*  In  fact,  certain 
apprenticeship  rules,  grossly  unfair  to  the  large  local  unions, 

"International  Journal  [Iron  Holders],  March,  1874. 

"  These  143  local  societies  contained  only  6842  of  the  14,000  mem- 
bers belonging  to  the  international  union.  These  figures  have  been 
compiled  from  the  semiannual  financial  report  contained  in  the 
Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  December  15,  1882,  June,  1883. 


206  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [3 1 2 

were  adopted  at  this  time  by  a  majority  of  small  societies 
containing  only  about  one  seventh  of  the  membership.-^ 

When  the  Cigar  Makers  finally  decided  that  the  vote 
should  not  be  cast  by  each  local  society  as  a  unit  but  by  each 
member  "  in  his  individual  capacity,"  so  vague  was  their 
conception  of  popular  government  that  some  of  the  subor- 
dinate unions  failed  to  grasp  the  significance  of  the  new  rule. 
Some  reported  the  whole  membership  as  voting  in  favor 
even  though  a  bare  majority  had  passed  the  measure.  For 
example,  if  a  local  union  had  a  membership  of  one  hundred 
and  fifty,  and  one  hundred  and  twenty  were  present,  of 
whom  ninety  voted  for  and  thirty  against  a  measure,  one 
hundred  and  fifty  were  reported  as  voting  in  favor  of  the 
measure.  The  president  was  forced  to  explain  what  was 
really  meant  by  popular  vote.^*' 

The  experience  of  the  older  organizations  has  been  re- 
peated by  some  of  the  newer  ones.  When  the  Plumbers 
were  considering  at  the  conventions  of  1894  and  1896  the 
advisability  of  adopting  the  initiative  and  referendum,  the 
question  was  raised  whether  the  vote  should  be  counted 
according  to  the  number  of  local  unions  or  the  number  of 
members.  Alarmed  at  the  possibility  of  one  large  union  in 
New  York,  Chicago,  or  Boston,  with  a  membership  of  a 
thousand,  outvoting  fifty  small  ones  with  an  average  mem- 
bership of  twenty,  the  small  societies  urged  that  each  local 
union  cast  only  one  vote.-^  On  the  other  hand,  a  delegate 
from  one  of  the  large  societies  declared:  "One  man  is  just 
as  good  as  another  wherever  found.  If  there  are  a  thousand 
members  in  Chicago,  every  one  of  those  thousand  members 
is  entitled  to  an  expression  of  his  ideas,  just  the  same  as  an 
individual  member  of  the  smallest  organization."-® 

^"This  measure  could  be  enforced  in  the  small  towns  where 
machinery  or  division  of  labor  had  not  been  introduced.  Its  en- 
forcement was  impracticable  in  the  large  cities  where  team  work 
and  the  use  of  the  molding  machines  commonly  prevailed  (Cigar 
Makers'  Official  Journal,  March,  1883). 

^' Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  April,  1883. 

"  Proceedings,  1894,  in  Supplement  to  United  Association  Journal, 
vol.  ii,  no.  I. 

^  Proceedings,  1896,  pp.  26-27,  in  Supplement  to  United  Associa- 
tion Journal,  vol.  iii,  no.  i. 


313]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  20/ 

Illustrations  might  easily  be  multiplied,  but  enough  have 
probably  been  given  to  show  that  there  has  been  little  ideal- 
ization of  democratic  forms  of  government  by  the  American 
trade  unionists,  that  the  initiative  and  referendum  were 
sometimes  introduced  in  a  form  far  from  democratic,  and 
were  made  truly  democratic  only  against  great  opposition. 

Why,  then,  have  the  initiative  and  referendum  been 
adopted  by  American  trade  unionists?  Primarily  they  have 
been  employed  between  the  sessions  of  the  convention  to 
transact  business  which  cannot  be  wisely  entrusted  to  the 
executive  board,  yet  can  be  postponed  only  with  grave  in- 
convenience until  the  next  convention.  To  a  minor  degree 
they  have  been  used  to  limit  the  power  of  the  representative 
assembly.  The  power  of  convention  has  been  so  limited, 
first,  because  the  difficulty  of  establishing  an  adequate  system 
of  representation  has  enabled  the  convention  to  pass  meas- 
ures reflecting  the  opinion  of  the  minority  rather  than  of 
the  majority,  and  second,  because  the  local  unions,  fearful 
lest  their  independence  should  be  to  some  extent  limited, 
have  been  reluctant  to  entrust  wide  discretionary  powers  to 
the  delegates  who  represent  them  in  the  delegate  assembly. 
Some  organizations,  therefore,  require  that  enactments 
passed  by  convention  must  be  submitted  to  popular  vote. 
Thirdly,  the  frequent  lobbying  and  the  serious  factional  dis- 
putes recurring  during  elections  of  officers  by  convention 
and  the  difficulty  of  establishing  an  adequate  system  of  rep- 
resentation have  led  a  small  group  of  associations  to  elect 
officers  by  the  general  membership.  Finally,  the  holding  of 
conventions  is  a  heavy  financial  burden.  As  the  members 
have  become  accustomed  to  governing  themselves  directly,  to 
save  expense  the  representative  assembly  has  been  convoked 
less  and  less  frequently,  and  greater  use  has  been  made  of 
the  initiative  and  referendum.  Some  observation  will  be 
oflfered  on  each  of  these  four  reasons  for  the  use  of  this 
instrument  of  government. 

The  use  of  the  initiative  and  referendum  to  transact  be- 
tween conventions  business  which  may  not  be  safely  en- 
trusted to  the  officers  of  the  executive  board  admits  of  easy 


208  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [3 1 4 

explanation.  As  has  been  pointed  out,  the  attempt  of  the 
convention  to  retain  all  legislative  power  has  invariably 
failed,  since  in  unexpected  emergencies  national  officials 
have  not  hesitated  to  violate  old  rules  or  adopt  new  ones. 
To  vest  even  limited  legislative  power  in  an  executive  board 
already  exercising  important  executive  and  judicial  func- 
tions, as  a  few  unions  have  done,  results  in  creating  during 
the  period  between  conventions  a  form  of  government  dan- 
gerously akin  to  bureaucracy.  Even  if  the  board  is  not 
tempted  to  abuse  its  authority,  the  local  -unions  may  refuse 
to  obey  its  decrees.  Always  prone  to  rebel  against  regula- 
tions of  the  federal  union,  the  local  societies  will  be  much 
more  inclined  to  do  so  when  such  restrictions  have  been 
imposed  by  a  small  board.  Opposition  to  bureaucracy,  to 
bossism,  to  clique  legislation,  serves  as  a  good  excuse  for 
their  disobedience.  To  avoid  such  a  contingency,  sixty-six 
national  unions  adopt  amendments  to  the  rules  during  the 
period  between  conventions  by  means  of  the  initiative  and 
referendum.-^  The  rules  so  passed  reflect  the  opinions  and 
interests,  not  of  a  few  leaders,  but  of  the  whole  body  of 
members.  The  mandates  issued  by  this  authority  no  local 
society  can  find  the  slightest  excuse  for  disobeying. 

To  prevent  delay,  a  few  unions  permit  local  societies  and 
members  to  appeal  from  decisions  of  the  executive  board  to 
popular  vote.  The  usual  method  of  appeal  to  convention 
causes  a  delay  of  many  weeks  or  months  in  securing  a  final 
decision.  Guilty  members  and  local  societies  are  thus  able 
to  postpone  their  well-merited  punishment,  and  innocent  par- 
ties suffer  grave  injustice  by  being  deprived  for  many  weeks 
of  the  full  and  impartial  hearing  that  will  easily  acquit  them. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  court  of  popular  vote  is  always  in 
session,  and  cases  are  not  kept  waiting  long  on  its  docket. 

This  method  of  administering  justice  is,  however,  very 

"Early  in  the  history  of  the  United  Brotherhood  of  Carpenters 
and  Joiners,  when  the  advantages  of  adopting  legislation  between 
conventions  by  means  of  the  popular  vote  was  being  discussed,  one 
writer  said:  "Now,  if  we  want  an  amendment,  we  have  to  wait  till 
next  convention.  Under  the  system  of  the  initiative  and  referen- 
dum, we  can  get  it  any  time"  (The  Carpenter,  June,  1883). 


315]  THE    INITIIATIVE   AND   THE   REFERENDUM  2O9 

crude.  Each  side  writes  a  statement  of  its  case,  and  this, 
together  with  all  other  possible  documentary  evidence,  is 
considered  by  the  members  at  meetings  of  the  local  unions. 
Cross-questioning  of  witnesses  is  of  course  impracticable. 
Perhaps  because  of  the  crudity  of  the  method,  judicial  de- 
cisions are  submitted  to  popular  vote  by  far  fewer  organiza- 
tions than  those  which  use  the  legislative  referendum. 

Applications  of  local  societies  for  strike  benefits  are  sub- 
mitted to  popular  vote  by  some  unions  because  of  frequent 
dissatisfaction  with  decisions  of  the  executive  board.  The 
consideration  of  such  applications  cannot  be  postponed  until 
next  convention  because  strikes,  to  be  effective,  must  be  de- 
clared immediately.  At  the  same  time  the  local  union  whose 
application  has  been  refused  is  usually  much  disgruntled, 
accuses  the  members  of  the  board  of  graft  and  favoritism, 
and  often  proceeds  to  strike  without  the  aid  of  funds  from 
the  national  treasury,  with  disastrous  results  to  itself  and 
indirectly  to  the  federal  organization.  Occasionally  local 
unions  have  been  so  rebellious  and  so  bitterly  resentful  that 
the  officers  or  the  executive  board  have  asked  to  be  relieved 
of  the  very  disagreeable  duty  of  sanctioning  strikes.®** 

Another  argument  urged  in  favor  of  submitting  applica- 
tions for  strike  benefits  to  popular  vote  is  that  the  members 
who  must  be  taxed  to  support  a  strike  should  be  permitted 
to  say  whether  or  not  it  should  be  declared ;  and  it  is  further 
argued  that  if  permitted  to  vote,  they  will  pay  the  necessary 
assessments  more  promptly.®^  Use  of  the  strike  referendum 
delays  considerably,  however,  the  declaration  of  hostilities, 
and  the  members  display  little  discrimination  in  making 
decisions.  Almost  invariably  applications  for  financial  as- 
sistance are  granted.     Perhaps  this  is  the  reason  why  the 

*°  For  example,  the  president  of  the  Miners'  National  Association, 
which  was  organized  in  1873,  was  vested  with  power  to  grant  strike 
benefits.  He  was  so  bitterly  attacked,  however,  whenever  he  re- 
fused financial  assistance,  and  found  his  advice  so  uniformly  disre- 
garded that  he  urged  the  submission  of  applications  for  benefits  to 
a  vote  of  the  members  (National  Labor  Tribune,  November  7, 
1874). 

"  See  The  Laster,  August  15,  1888,  p.  2. 

14 


2IO  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [316 

Strike  referendum  has  been  used  to  so  limited  an  extent  by- 
American  trade  unions. 

While  the  use  of  the  initiative  and  referendum  between 
conventions  is  not  designed  to  restrict  the  functions  of  the 
representative  assembly,  it  does  so  to  a  considerable  extent. 
Save  in  the  unions  of  Coopers  and  Potters^^  the  conven- 
tion has,  indeed,  full  power  to  amend  or  abolish  any  rule 
adopted  by  popular  vote,  but  in  practice  it  would  hesitate  a 
long  while  before  changing  a  rule  adopted  by  an  overwhelm- 
ing vote  of  the  members.  When  judicial  disputes  are  de- 
cided by  the  general  membership,  the  representative  assem- 
bly exercises,  except  in  three  unions,  no  judicial  power.^' 
In  addition,  applications  for  strike  benefits  and  various  other 
matters  are  rarely  considered  by  the  convention  when  an 
opportunity  exists  for  transacting  such  business  by  popular 
vote. 

The  second  great  purpose  in  the  introduction  of  the  initia- 
tive and  referendum  has  been  to  limit  the  power  of  the  rep- 
resentative assembly.  The  enactments  of  the  convention 
are  submitted  to  popular  vote  by  some  fifteen  associations. 
This  policy  has  been  adopted  because  of  the  decentralized 
character  of  American  trade  unions  and  because  of  the 
difficult}^  of  obtaining  an  adequate  system  of  representation. 

In  decentralized  national  unions  the  constituent  local  socie- 
ties do  not  allow  their  delegates  to  exercise  discretionary 
power  at  meetings  of  the  convention  for  fear  that  these 
delegates,  subordinating  local  to  national  interests,  may  per- 
mit the  undue  absorption  of  functions  by  the  central  organ- 
ization. The  delegates  are  restrained  in  two  ways:  Either 
they  must  vote  according  to  very  specific  instructions  from 

^"  The  Coopers  provide  that  no  rule  enacted  by  popular  vote  vi^ithin 
the  six  months  before  the  assembling  of  convention  can  be  modified 
by  the  delegates.  The  Potters  provide  that  amendments  adopted  by 
a  vote  of  the  members  shall  have  precedence  over  those  enacted  by 
convention. 

^  The  exceptions  are  the  Bakery  and  Confectionery  Workers  and 
the  Steam  Engineers,  which  permit  members  to  appeal  either  to 
popular  vote  or  to  the  next  convention,  and  the  Actors,  which  give 
members  such  a  choice,  and  also  permit  appeals  to  the  convention 
from  the  popular  vote. 


317]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  211 

the  local  unions,  or,  if  allowed  to  use  their  own  judgment, 
they  must  submit  all  their  decisions  to  a  vote  of  the 
members. 

Efforts  of  the  American  trade  unions  to  limit  the  con- 
vention to  a  specified  program  have  invariably  failed.  Fre- 
quently the  best  and  most  feasible  plan  is  not  suggested  be- 
forehand, but  is  conceived  during  the  debate  on  the  floor 
of  convention.  Frequently,  also,  concessions  must  be  made 
by  all  sides  before  a  measure  can  be  adopted.  To  be  sure, 
the  delegates  may  postpone  the  consideration  of  a  measure 
from  one  session  to  the  following  one,  recommending  that 
during  the  interval  its  merits  and  demerits  be  discussed  in 
the  journal  and  at  meetings  of  the  local  societies.  By  this 
means  the  delegates  are  able  to  come  to  the  next  convention 
fully  instructed  how  to  vote.  When  a  scheme  is  new  and 
unfamiliar,  and  a  preliminary  campaign  of  publicity  may  be 
necessary  to  induce  the  members  to  pay  the  increased  dues 
needed  to  carry  out  the  plan  or  to  cooperate  in  other  ways 
for  its  success,  such  deferment  may  be  wise;  but  in  many 
instances  such  a  policy  delays  unnecessarily  the  inaugura- 
tion of  imperatively  needed  reform.  Indeed,  so  seriously  is 
the  efficiency  of  the  representative  assembly  impaired  by  any 
effort  to  restrict  its  initiatory  power  that  the  older  national 
unions  such  as  the  Iron  Molders^*  and  the  Cigar  Makers^' 
soon  ceased  to  limit  the  delegates  to  the  consideration  of 
measures  on  which  they  had  been  instructed.  Only  six  out 
of  one  hundred  and  thirty  national  unions  try  to  carry  out 
such  a  policy  at  the  present  day.** 

Some  fifteen  national  unions  attempt  to  retain  control 
over  the  delegates  by  requiring  the  submission  to  popular 
vote''  of  all  measures  that  they  adopt.     Thus  the  initiatory 

"  Proceedings,  1867 ;  Proceedings,  1868. 

*"  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  April,  1877;  Constitution,   1880. 

"  These  are  the  Electric  Workers,  Flint  Glass  Workers.  Glass 
Bottle  Blowers,  Leather  Workers,  Locomotive  Firemen  and  Engine- 
men,  and  Print  Cutters. 

"  The  Steam,  Hot  Water,  and  Power  Pipe  Fitters  and  Helpers 
have  adopted  a  scheme  which  is  a  compromise  lietween  the  method 
of  instructing  delegates  and  the  system  of  submitting  to  popular 
vote  measures  advocated  by  the  delegates.    Amendments  which  have 


212  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS        [318 

power  of  the  convention  remains  unimpaired  and  at  the 
same  time  the  members  have  the  assurance  that  the  del- 
egates cannot  put  into  force  a  measure  to  which  the  majority- 
is  opposed.  Moreover,  a  strong  minority  is  less  apt  to 
break  into  open  rebellion  against  measures  adopted  by  pop- 
ular vote.  As  a  writer  in  an  early  journal  of  the  United 
Brotherhood  of  Carpenters  and  Joiners  declared,  in  terse 
though  inelegant  language :  "  Make  your  laws  in  conven- 
tion and  pack  them  down  the  throats  of  the  members  and 
they  will  be  ignored.  Frame  your  laws  and  let  the  mem- 
bers ratify  them  as  laws  and  they  will  be  respected. "^^ 

Another  reason  for  submitting  measures  adopted  by  con- 
vention to  a  vote  of  the  members  has  been  the  difficulty  of 
securing  adequate  representation  in  that  body.  Frequently 
only  a  minority  of  the  local  unions  send  delegates  to  the 
federal  assembly.  Rules  promulgated  by  such  a  minority 
will  naturally  be  ignored,  and  efforts  to  enforce  them  may 
drive  some  of  the  local  societies  to  secede.  Recognizing 
this,  associations  which  do  not  regularly  use  the  referendum 
do  sometimes  submit  the  enactments  of  a  slimly  attended 
convention  to  popular  vote.  Because  so  many  local  societies 
failed  to  send  delegates,  the  Plumbers  required  for  a  time 
that  all  legislative  proposals  of  the  convention  must  re- 
ceive popular  sanction  before  becoming  effective;  and  since 
the  abolishment  of  this  fixed  rule,  poorly  attended  conven- 
tions have  voluntarily  submitted  important  measures  to 
vote  of  the  members.^* 

This  use  of  the  referendum  is  less  imperatively  needed 
when  the  expenses  of  delegates  are  paid  from  the  national 
treasury  since,  under  this  policy,  practically  all  the  local 

been  submitted  three  months  prior  to  the  convention  and  which 
have  been  published  in  the  trade  journal,  and  hence  upon  which  the 
delegates  have  been  instructed  by  their  constituents,  become  law  as 
soon  as  ratified  by  a  two-thirds  vote  of  the  delegates.  Amendments 
which  are  initiated  on  the  floor  of  convention  must,  if  approved  by 
the  delegates,  be  ratified  by  means  of  the  referendum. 

^  The  Carpenter,  February,  1884. 

*"  Proceedings.  1894,  in  Supplement  to  United  Association  Journal, 
vol.  iii,  no.  I ;  Proceedings,  1S96,  pp.  26-27,  in  Supplement  to  United 
Association  Journal,  vol.  iii,  no.  i ;  Proceedings,  1899,  in  Plumbers, 
Gas  and  Steam  Fitters'  Official  Journal,  September  25,  1899. 


319]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  21 3 

societies  secure  representation.  In  the  Iron  Molders'  Union 
about  1882  one  group  of  members  was  advocating  that  all 
expenses  of  delegates  be  paid  by  the  national  organization. 
Another  group  was  urging  that,  without  shifting  the  bur- 
den of  paying  expenses,  a  more  equitable  method  of  leg- 
islating be  secured  by  referring  all  measures  adopted  by  the 
convention  to  the  general  membership.  The  system  of 
paying  delegates  from  the  federal  treasury  was  finally 
adopted,  and  the  policy  of  referring  the  work  of  conven- 
tion to  popular  vote  has  never  been  inaugurated.'*"  An  offi- 
cial of  the  Journeymen  Barbers'  National  Union  declared 
to  the  writer  that  such  popular  ratification  of  legislation  was 
not  needed  in  his  organization  because  the  expenses  of  dele- 
gates were  paid  by  the  national  union,  and  hence  the  local 
societies  were  always  fairly  well  represented  in  convention. 
Nevertheless,  the  Cigar  Makers,  Pattern  Makers,  Piano  and 
Organ  Makers,  and  Tobacco  Workers,  which  pay  the  ex- 
penses of  delegates  from  the  central  treasury,  do  use  the  ref- 
erendum for  this  purpose,  apparently  because  the  local 
societies  fear  to  trust  the  delegates  with  final  legislative 
power. 

In  all  the  older  national  trade  unions,  officers  were  elected 
by  convention.  During  the  last  ten  or  fifteen  years  there 
has  been  a  decided  tendency  toward  election  by  popular 
vote,  and  such  a  system  exists  at  the  time  of  writing  in  per- 
haps eighteen  national  unions.  The  movement  toward 
popular  elections  has  resulted  primarily  from  a  desire  to 
avoid  the  lobbying  and  wire-pulling  which  not  infrequently 
characterize  the  elections  of  officers  in  convention.  The  del- 
egates nearly  always  split  into  parties  in  support  of  rival 
candidates,  and  the  fiercely  contested  factional  fights  be- 
tween these  parties  threaten  sometimes  to  split  asunder  the 
organization,  and  always  leave  bitterness  and  ill  feeling. 
"  There  are,"  declared  a  trade-union  official  to  the  writer, 
"always  half  a  dozen  men  after  my  job,  and  they  use  all 
kind  of  wire-pulling  in  trying  to  get  it."     "When  officers 

"Iron  Molders'  Journal,  May,  1882. 


214  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [32O 

were  elected  by  the  convention,"  confessed  the  secretary  of 
another  union,  "  I  was  always  forced  to  have  a  clique  or 
following  of  my  own  among  the  delegates  of  that  body. 
Since  the  system  of  popular  elections  has  been  introduced,  it 
has  not  been  necessary  to  do  so." 

The  popular  election  of  officers  has  been  introduced  in 
some  cases  through  the  efforts  of  a  faction  which  had  been 
dissatisfied  with  the  success  of  another  faction  in  dominat- 
ing the  convention.  For  example,  an  officer  of  a  certain 
union  was  not  of  the  sort  that  is  "popular  with  the  boys." 
He  was  a  strict  disciplinarian,  rigidly  enforcing  the  rules. 
He  did  not  have  the  hail-fellow-well-met  temperament. 
The  group  with  whom  he  was  unpopular  succeeded  finally  in 
defeating  him  and  in  electing  a  man  of  a  wholly  different 
type.  The  defeated  official  and  his  friends  bent  their  efforts 
to  secure  the  inauguration  of  a  system  of  popular  elections. 
They  were  successful,  and,  it  is  interesting  to  note,  were 
equally  successful  in  electing  their  candidate,  who  has  re- 
tained his  office  ever  since.  In  another  association  where 
there  has  been  a  long  struggle  between  the  socialistic  and 
non-socialistic  groups  the  conservatives  dominated  the  con- 
vention and  held  all  the  offices.  The  socialists  advocated 
election  by  popular  vote  as  a  possible  means  of  defeating 
their  opponents.  The  president  had  been  particularly 
drastic  in  his  efforts  to  suppress  socialism,  and  its  advocates 
were  very  anxious  to  encompass  his  downfall.  At  first  they 
proposed  that  the  president  should  be  elected  by  popular 
vote  and  the  other  officers  by  convention,  but  this  attack 
on  the  president  was  so  apparent  that  later  they  proposed 
the  election  of  all  officers  by  vote  of  the  members.  Finally, 
such  an  amendment  was  adopted. 

The  failure  of  many  local  societies  to  have  representa- 
tion in  convention  has  been  another  cause  tending  to  bring 
about  popular  elections.  Naturally  the  defeated  candidate 
and  his  followers  are  very  quick  to  point  out  that  the  suc- 
cessful rival  has  been  elected  by  the  representatives  of  a 
small  minority  of  the  organization.     Sometimes,  also,  pop- 


32 1]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  215 

ular  elections  have  resulted  from  a  struggle  for  supremacy 
between  the  large  and  the  small  local  unions.  In  the  Cigar 
Makers'  International  Union  the  small  societies  at  an  early 
date  secured  the  adoption  of  a  rule  to  the  effect  that  at 
elections  of  officers  in  convention  each  subordinate  union, 
irrespective  of  the  size  of  its  delegation,  should  have  only 
one  vote.  Since  the  expenses  of  delegates  were  paid  by  the 
international  union,  the  small  local  unions  were  well  repre- 
sented, and  by  means  of  this  rule  they  controlled  elections. 
The  large  local  unions  were  much  dissatisfied,  and  their  in- 
fluence was  added  to  that  of  the  socialists  in  favor  of  elect- 
ing officers  by  vote  of  the  members.*'- 

The  lengthening  of  the  interval  between  conventions,  due 
to  the  desire  to  save  the  cost  of  holding  such  meetings,  has 
caused  an  increasing  use  of  the  initiative  and  referendum. 
A  few  New  England  associations  once  held  conventions 
semiannually  or  even  quarterly.  At  first,  the  New  England 
Lasters'  Association,  formed  in  1879,  called  its  delegates  four 
times  a  year.  This  organization  consisted  then  of  only  twenty- 
three  local  societies,  all  in  Massachusetts,  and  all  embraced 
within  an  area  not  over  sixty  or  seventy  miles  in  circum- 
ference. After  the  territorial  jurisdiction  had  widened 
to  include  branches  established  in  Maine  and  New  Hamp- 
shire, quarterly  conventions  were  abolished,  and  the  dele- 
gates assembled  semiannually.  Later,  as  local  unions  out- 
side of  New  England  were  brought  into  the  organization, 
the  expense  of  holding  conventions  increased  greatly ;  at  the 
same  time,  as  the  framework  of  government  had  now  taken 
on  fairly  definite  form,  frequent  amending  of  the  consti- 
tution was  less  imperatively  needed.  Since  1890,  therefore, 
conventions  have  been  held  annually  instead  of  semian- 
nually.*- Today  only  one  small  organization,  the  Pen  and 
Pocket  Knife  Grinders  and  Finishers'  Union,  with  a  juris- 

**  As  early  as  1881  the  delegate  from  subordinate  union  No.  144, 
in  New  York  City,  the  largest  local  society  of  cigar  makers  in  the 
country,  was  advocating  the  popular  election  of  officers  (Proceed- 
ings, 1881,  in  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  October  10,  1881). 

*•  The  Laster,  April  15,  1890. 


2l6  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [322 

diction  confined  practically  to  New  England,  holds  conven- 
tions semiannually.  All  the  other  federal  organizations 
convoke  the  representative  assembly  not  oftener  than  once 
a  year.  Furthermore,  as  has  been  pointed  out,  the  con- 
vention remains  in  session  a  very  short  time.  Every  effort 
is  made  to  rush  through  business  and  adjourn  within  a 
week  or  ten  days. 

To  the  workman,  with  his  slender  income,  even  short  an- 
nual conventions,  held  for  only  a  few  days,  are  a  heavy 
burden  of  expense.^^  At  the  convention  of  1902  the  Iron 
Holders  paid  more  than  $50,000  for  the  mileage  and  per 
diem  allowance  of  their  delegates.**  The  convention  of 
Cigar  Makers  in  1896  cost  $30,000.*^  On  the  other  hand, 
save  for  election  of  officers,  the  submission  of  matters  to 
popular  vote  costs  little.  National  business  can  be  consid- 
ered by  the  members  at  the  regular  meetings  of  the  local 
union.  Even  the  cost  of  special  circulars  can  be  saved  by 
pubHshing  in  the  official  journal  the  amendments  and  other 
measures  submitted  to  the  members.  Therefore,  as  the 
trade  unionists  have  become  more  and  more  familiar  with 
the  possibilities  of  the  referendum,  they  have  convoked  the 
delegate  body  less  frequently,  and  they  depend  more  on  the 
method  of  transacting  business  by  popular  vote.  At  the 
same  time,  as  the  interval  between  convention  widens,  more 
of  the  small  local  societies  can  afford  to  send  delegates.  The 
sessions  of  the  representative  assembly  are  also  less  apt  to 
be  unduly  shortened  because  of  the  expense,  and  in  conse- 
quence measures  receive  more  deliberate  consideration  than 
formerly. 

Government  by  convention,  however,  has  several  advan- 
tages over  government  by  popular  vote.  One  of  these  ad- 
vantages is  the  esprit  de  corps  developed  by  the  personal 

^  See  Report  of  the  President  (Proceedings  of  the  International 
Typographical  Union,  1900,  p.  ^2,  in  Supplement  to  the  Typograph- 
ical Journal,  September,  1900). 

**  Proceedings,  1902,  in  Supplement  to  Iron  Molders'  Journal,  Sep- 
tember, 1902,  p.  769. 

"  Proceedings,  1896,  in  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  October, 
1896,  p.  58. 


323]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  21/ 

contact  of  the  delegates.  To  these  delegates  the  federal 
organization  is  no  longer  an  abstraction,  but  becomes  real 
and  tangible.  The  spirit  of  fraternity  is  developed.  The 
representative  assembly  is  particularly  valuable  for  this  pur- 
pose in  the  early  days  of  a  national  union.  The  convention 
also  serves  as  a  liberal  education  to  the  officers  and  members. 
It  acquaints  them  with  trade  conditions  in  various  parts  of 
the  country, — knowledge  invaluable  in  bargaining  with  em- 
ployers. It  reveals  the  harmony  and  the  conflict  of  in- 
terests between  the  local  societies,  the  need  of  cooperation, 
and  the  need  of  compromise  on  all  sides  to  make  such  co- 
operation possible.  This  spirit  the  delegates  carry  back 
and  impart  to  their  local  union.  Then,  too,  they  stand 
sponsor  for  the  enactments  of  convention,  defend  them 
when  they  are  attacked,  and  explain  away  any  opposition 
arising  from  a  misconception  of  their  purpose.  Such  a 
spirit  of  unity  and  fraternity  may  be  stimulated  and  such 
knowledge  imparted  through  the  trade-union  journal,  wherein 
appear  transactions  of  the  national  association,  reports  on 
trade  conditions,  and  the  doings  of  local  unions;  but  the 
journal  cannot  supply  the  personal  exchange  of  information 
and  opinion. 

Systematic  formulation  of  a  new  constitution  or  reorgan- 
ization of  an  old  one  by  means  of  the  initiative  and  refer- 
endum is  impracticable.  The  organizations  which  have 
abandoned  the  policy  of  holding  conventions  or  convoke 
them  at  long  intervals  create  periodically  a  small  commit- 
tee which  draws  up  a  unified  series  of  amendments  and 
submits  them  to  the  members.  The  constitutional  commit- 
tee at  conventions  performs  the  same  function,  but  the  ad- 
vantage of  the  convention  is  that  it  permits  a  discussion  by 
the  delegates  from  various  sections  and  various  branches 
of  the  trade.  The  measure  is  more  apt  to  be  modified  to 
suit  the  many  conflicting  interests  when  initiated  by  con- 
vention than  when  drawn  up  by  a  small  committee.  The 
convention  is,  therefore,  especially  needed  when  an  organi- 
zation is  young  and  its  constitution  is  in  the  formative  stage. 


2l8  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TR.VDE    UNIONS         [324 

In  1879  the  Cigar  Makers  began  a  thorough  reorganiza- 
tion of  their  whole  system  of  government,  and  embarked 
upon  various  new  activities.  For  several  years  previous  the 
association  had  been  holding  conventions  biennially,  trans- 
acting business  during  the  interval  by  means  of  the  refer- 
endum. Now  the  union  decided  to  convoke  conventions 
annually,  in  order  to  thrash  out  more  thoroughly  than  was 
possible  by  means  of  the  referendum  the  practicability  and 
the  necessary  modifications  of  the  newly  adopted  measures. 

In  new  organizations,  for  this  reason,  the  delegates  are 
usually  called  together  annually.  There  are,  of  course,  ex- 
ceptions, such  as  the  Paving  Cutters  and  the  Quarry  Work- 
ers, who  have  copied  the  constitution  of  the  Granite  Cutters, 
and  the  Tobacco  Workers,  who  have  copied  that  of  the 
Cigar  Makers.  In  imitation  of  the  associations  after  which 
they  are  modeled,  all  of  these  recently  organized  unions  hold 
no  conventions.  Most  of  the  unions  established  since  the 
depression  of  the  nineties,  however,  hold  conventions  an- 
nually, and  twenty-five  out  of  thirty-six  new  unions  make  no 
use  of  the  referendum.  As  national  organizations  grow 
older  and  become  better  unified,  as  their  fundamental  rules 
begin  to  take  definite  form  and  the  machinery  of  govern- 
ment begins  to  run  smoothly,  the  work  of  convention  be- 
comes lighter,  and  much  of  it  is  merely  routine.  When 
such  a  stage  is  reached,  the  delegates  are  called  together  less 
frequently.  At  the  same  time  the  system  of  the  initiative 
and  referendum  is  adopted  or  its  use  extended  in  those 
associations  where  it  has  already  been  introduced.^^ 

The  initiative  and  referendum  have  not  been  used  with 
complete  success  by  American  trade  unions,  and  the  expe- 
rience of  the  unions  with  these  methods  of  government  has 
revealed  numerous  weaknesses.  Of  these  weaknesses  some 
are  serious  and  all  are  irritating,  particularly  to  trade-union 

*'Only  eight  organizations  formed  prior  to  1895  do  not  use  the 
referendum.  One  of  these  is  the  Bricklayers  and  Masons.  The 
others  are  the  railway  unions,  namely,  the  Maintenance-of-Way 
Employees,  Railway  Conductors,  Railroad  Telegraphers,  Switchmen, 
Railway  Trainmen,  Locomotive  Firemen  and  Enginemen,  and  Loco- 
motive Engineers. 


325]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  2I9 

leaders,  who  at  times  have  condemned  in  rather  vigorous 
language  this  scheme  of  popular  government. 

The  experience  of  the  American  trade  unions  reveals  six 
distinct  defects  in  the  initiative  and  referendum  as  govern- 
mental devices : — 

(i)  The  members  show  lack  of  discrimination  in  casting 
their  ballots. 

(2)  They  fail  to  vote. 

(3)  They  manifest  undue  activity  in  submitting  constitu- 
tional amendments  and  appealing  from  judicial  decisions  to 
popular  vote. 

(4)  Systematic  and  thorough  revision  of  the  constitution 
by  the  initiative  and  referendum  is  difficult. 

(5)  Delay  is  caused  in  sanctioning  strikes  by  means  of 
the  referendum. 

(6)  Popular  elections  of  officers  are  expensive,  and  give 
rise  to  bitter  controversies  and  fraudulent  practices. 

The  most  important  weakness  of  the  system  of  direct  gov- 
ernment has  been  the  lack  of  discrimination  displayed  by  the 
trade  unionists  in  casting  their  ballots.  This  defect  was 
clearly  brought  out  by  the  president  of  the  Iron  Molders' 
Union  at  a  recent  convention.  "While  the  referendum 
vote,"  he  declared,  "  is  undoubtedly  founded  upon  correct 
principles,  the  result  of  its  use  in  labor  organizations  has  not 
always  been  in  harmony  with  progressive  thought.  It  is  an 
unfortunate  fact,  but  truth  compels  me  to  say  it,  that  our 
members  do  not  give  important  questions  submitted  to  their 
decision  the  careful  study  and  intelligent  thought  they 
should,  but  allow  themselves  to  be  swayed  by  their  preju- 
dices or  their  fears.  ...  In  my  experience  with  the  Iron 
Holders'  Union,  and  it  is  the  experience  of  nearly  every 
labor  organization,  it  has  devolved  upon  the  higher  intelli- 
gence of  the  leaders  of  our  membership  in  convention  as- 
sembled to  initiate  important  reforms  or  take  advarkce 
ground  in  our  movement."^" 

*' Officers'   Report  and   Proceedings,   in   Supplement   to   the  Iron 
Molders'  Journal,  September,  1902. 


220  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [326 

The  idiosyncracies  displayed  by  the  trade  unionists  in 
casting  their  ballots  are  various.  One  of  the  most  striking 
is  the  tendency  to  reject  all  proposals  either  to  increase  the 
monthly  dues  or  to  adopt  new  activities  entailing  a  heavier 
burden  of  taxation.  In  1890  the  convention  of  Carpenters 
and  Joiners  raised  the  dues  of  the  members  only  to  have 
the  measure  promptly  defeated  when  submitted  to  popular 
vote.*^  Again,  in  1892,  proposals  of  the  convention  to  in- 
crease the  dues,  create  a  large  central  strike  fund,  and 
establish  a  system  of  sick  benefits  were  with  equal  prompt- 
ness defeated  by  the  referendum.***  The  Iron  Holders,  who 
make  no  provision  for  submitting  to  popular  vote  the  legis- 
lation adopted  by  the  representative  body,  inaugurated  the 
system  of  high  dues  with  little  opposition  at  the  conven- 
tion of  1895,  Speaking  of  the  increase  of  dues,  the  presi- 
dent of  the  Iron  Molders  declared  at  the  convention  of 
1902 :  "  Had  such  a  proposition  been  submitted  to  referen- 
dum vote  there  is  not  the  slightest  doubt  that  the  change 
would  have  been  overwhelmingly  defeated.  And  yet,  even 
those  who  in  1895  were  loudest  in  their  condemnation, 
will  admit  that  it  was  the  wisest  step  ever  taken."^** 

Sometimes  the  members  will  vote  to  adopt  a  new  activity, 
but  will  fail  to  provide  adequate  funds  to  carry  it  out. 
On  one  occasion,  at  a  convention  of  the  Plumbers,  the  pro- 
posal was  made  that  the  question  of  establishing  a  sick 
benefit  be  referred  to  popular  vote.  After  some  discussion, 
the  delegates  decided  not  to  do  so  for  fear  that  the  members 
would  vote  to  increase  the  amount  of  the  benefit — fixed  by 
convention  for  the  time  being  at  only  one  dollar  a  week — 
yet  would  not  provide  the  funds  from  which  to  pay  it.  As 
a  result,  the  plan  would  be  a  total  failure,  and  would  prob- 
ably be  permanently  abandoned.  The  tendency  of  the  mem- 
bers to  vote  in  this  inconsistent  fashion  may  be  illustrated 
by  an  incident  occurring  in  the  United  Brotherhood  of  Car- 

**  The  Carpenter,  December,  1890. 
"•Ibid.,  March,  1892. 

"  Officers'  Reports  and  Proceedings,  in  Supplement  to  the  Iron 
Holders'  Journal,  September,  igo2. 


327]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  221 

penters  and  Joiners  about  1895.  The  fund  set  apart  by  this 
organization  for  the  payment  of  the  death  benefit  had  be- 
come insufficient  because  of  the  high  death  rate,  this  in  turn 
being  due  to  the  rapid  increase  in  the  average  age  of  the 
members.  The  convention  decided  to  reduce  expenditures 
by  lowering  the  amount  of  the  benefits,  and  at  the  same  time 
to  increase  the  receipts  by  charging  a  registration  fee  of 
fifty  cents  to  each  new  member.  When  the  two  proposals 
were  submitted  to  popular  vote,  both  were  overwhelmingly 
defeated.  As  a  result,  an  assessment  of  thirty  cents  had  to 
be  levied  on  each  member  to  meet  death  claims  legally  due. 
Seven  hundred  dollars  had  to  be  borrowed  for  this  purpose 
from  the  "  protective  fund "  and  twelve  thousand  dollars 
from  the  "organizing  fund,"  thus  greatly  crippling  the 
power  of  the  union  to  carry  on  its  belligerent  and  industrial 
activities.'^ 

On  matters  of  collective  bargaining  the  vote  of  the  general 
membership  is  usually  quite  radical.  Very  often  more  is 
to  be  gained  by  compromising  with  employers  than  by  de- 
manding extreme  terms  and  thus  compelling  resort  to  a 
strike,  which  may  fail  completely.  If  the  members  are 
allowed  to  give  their  opinion,  they  often  refuse  to  com- 
promise. The  trouble  is,  as  a  prominent  trade-union  offi- 
cial explained  to  the  writer,  that  a  few  radical  members  in 
each  local  society  can  usually  prevent  the  great  majority 
from  pursuing  a  safe  and  conservative  course.  The  rad- 
icals declaim  to  the  effect  that  the  union  should  not  retreat. 
They  denounce  those  who  favor  a  compromise  as  cowards 
or  perhaps  even  as  traitors  and  bribe-takers.  By  such 
bluster  they  try  to  frighten  the  conservatives  into  silence, 
and  if  the  ballot  is  not  taken  secretly  may  force  them  to 
vote  against  their  convictions.  "  When  serving  as  national 
organizer,"  said  this  official,  "  I  had  to  speak  on  several 
occasions  before  a  local  society  which  my  brother  officers 
and  myself  considered  to  have  pursued  a  very  foolish 
policy.     Often  the   vote  to  pursue   that  policy  had   been 

"  Report  of  the  General  Secretary,  in  Proceedings,  i8g6. 


222  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [328 

unanimous.  But  before  I  had  finished  speaking,  a  majority 
had  been  won  over  to  my  way  of  thinking.  They  had  not 
been  converted,  however,  by  my  eloquence  or  my  logic. 
Many  had  believed  as  I  did  from  the  beginning,  but  they 
were  afraid  to  say  so  until  they  found  that  a  national  offi- 
cer held  the  same  opinion." 

The  refusal  of  the  rank  and  file  of  union  members  to 
make  concessions  to  employers  was  illustrated  in  the  Iron 
Holders' Union  about  1901,  when  the  question  of  permitting 
a  large  number  of  apprentices  to  learn  the  trade  was  sub- 
mitted to  popular  vote.  From  several  causes  the  industry 
was  developing  faster  than  the  increase  in  the  supply  of  men 
to  perform  the  work.  At  various  conferences  with  the 
officers  of  the  national  union  the  employers  in  the  Stove 
Founders'  Defense  Association  had  demanded  some  reduc- 
tion in  the  ratio  of  apprentices  to  journeymen,  in  order  that 
a  larger  number  of  apprentices  might  learn  the  trade.  The 
national  union  officers  were  willing  to  make  some  concession, 
— in  fact,  thought  that  the  ratio  should  be  lowered ;  but  the 
ratio  of  one  apprentice  for  every  eight  journeymen  had  been 
a  provision  of  the  Iron  Holders'  constitution  for  many 
years,  and  the  members  were  strongly  opposed  to  any 
change.  The  proposed  ratio  of  one  to  five  was,  therefore, 
overwhelmingly  defeated  by  a  vote  of  15,842  to  504;  and  a 
second  proposal  to  fix  the  ratio  somewhere  between  one  to 
five  and  one  to  eight  met  a  similar  fate  by  a  vote  of  12,314 
to  3978.'^ 

The  members  use  little  discrimination  in  voting  on  appli- 
cations of  local  unions  for  strike  benefits.  Some  unions 
never  refuse  an  application,  and  pride  themselves  on  never 
having  voted  against  a  strike.  Other  unions  vote  affirma- 
tively on  every  strike  application  until  the  funds  begin  to 
get  low  or  strike  assessments  begin  to  bear  heavily  upon 
them.  Thenceforth  they  reject  every  application  even 
though  the  strikes  in  question  may  be  much  more  justifiable 
than  those  already  sanctioned.     The  purpose  and  necessity 

"*  Report  of  the  President,  in  Officers'  Reports  and  Proceedings, 

1902. 


329]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  223 

of  the  Strike  and  the  conditions  favorable  or  unfavorable  to 
its  success  are  not  taken  into  consideration. 

The  tendency  of  the  local  unions  to  approve  all  strike 
applications  without  discrimination  may  at  times  be  exceed- 
ingly disastrous.  At  the  beginning  of  the  industrial  depres- 
sion in  1893  a  number  of  local  societies  in  the  Bricklayers' 
and  Masons'  International  Union  applied  to  the  central 
association  for  strike  benefits.  The  international  officers 
realized  that  struggles  with  employers  at  such  a  time  were 
doomed  to  failure  and  desired  to  limit  the  number  of  strikes 
sanctioned,  but  they  had  no  authority  to  do  so.  All  strike 
applications  had  to  be  submitted  to  the  local  unions,  and 
almost  invariably  they  were  approved.  In  fact,  the  organi- 
zation was  preserved  only  by  a  subterfuge.  The  interna- 
tional executive  board  prevented  the  otherwise  inevitable 
approval  of  all  strike  applications  by  refusing  to  submit 
many  of  them  to  the  referendum,  on  the  pretext  that  the 
local  unions  had  not  followed  the  proper  procedure  in  mak- 
ing such  applications." 

The  members  show  a  similar  lack  of  discrimination  in 
electing  officers  by  popular  vote.  The  Plumbers  abolished 
the  system  of  popular  elections  after  several  years'  trial 
because  they  thought  that  officers  of  greater  ability  were 
elected  by  convention  than  by  vote  of  the  members.  They 
argued  that  the  convention  usually  contains  many  of  the 
most  able  men  in  the  organization,  wdio  take  a  prominent 
part  in  the  discussion;  and  when  the  election  of  officers  takes 
place,  the  others  naturally  turn  to  them  as  the  men  who 
should  be  made  their  leaders.  On  the  other  hand,  the  rank 
and  file  have  little  means  of  knowing  which  members  possess 
ability."* 

Furthermore,  it  frequently  happens  that  the  members  fol- 
low rather  blindly  the  advice  of  local  leaders  in  voting  for 
the  several  candidates  for  national  offices.  When  the  old 
officers  are  candidates  for  reelection,  often  the  whole  vote 

^  Report  of  the  Secretary,  in  Proceedings,  1894. 
"  Proceedings,  in  Supplement  to  United  Association  Journal,  vol. 
iii,  no.  I,  p.  28. 


224  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [33© 

of  the  local  society  in  those  subordinate  unions  where  there 
are  a  few  leading  men  opposed  to  the  existing  administra- 
tion is  opposed  to  the  national  officers.  In  those  branches 
where  the  leading  men  are  friendly  to  the  administration 
the  vote  is  favorable.^^ 

Popular  elections  are  said  also  to  result  in  the  reelection 
of  the  officers  in  power.  There  may  be  other  candidates 
who  are  much  better  fitted  for  the  positions,  but  they  are 
comparatively  unknown,  or  possess  only  a  local  popularity. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  men  already  holding  office  have  a 
decided  advantage  over  the  other  contestants  because  their 
names  are  familiar  to  every  member  in  the  organization. 
When  on  one  occasion  a  local  society  of  tobacco  workers 
was  requested  to  nominate  candidates  for  office,  its  mem- 
bers replied,  "  We  are  very  well  pleased,  indeed,  with  the 
present  international  officers  and  place  them  all  in  nomina- 
tion for  reelection."^"  The  other  local  societies  of  tobacco 
workers  held  much  the  same  opinion,  and  all  the  officials 
were  retained  in  office  by  large  majorities.  When  in  1904 
the  Pattern  Makers  elected  their  officers  by  popular  vote 
for  the  first  time,  the  result  was  an  overwhelming  victory 
for  the  old  officers.  The  president  of  the  Pattern  Makers 
declared  this  tendency  of  the  members  to  reelect  the  old 
officers  to  be  a  serious  defect,  and  at  his  suggestion  the 
system  of  election  by  convention  was  restored.^^ 

That  popular  elections  in  the  trade  unions  tend  to  pro- 
long the  tenure  of  existing  administrations  is,  however,  very 
difficult  to  prove.  Officers  are  repeatedly  reelected  by  con- 
vention as  well  as  by  popular  vote,  and  under  both  systems 
often  continue  in  office  for  many  years.  Adolph  Strasser, 
former  president  of  the  Cigar  Makers,  was  regularly  re- 
elected by  each  succeeding  convention  from  1879  until  his 
voluntary  retirement  in  1892.     His  successor,  George  Per- 

**'  See  discussion  in  Proceedings  of  the  International  Union  of  the 
United  Brewery  Workmen  of  America,  1896. 

"  The  Tobacco  Worker,  October,  1905. 

^  Report  of  the  President,  in  Pattern  Makers'  Journal,  August, 
1904;  Report  of  the  President,  in  Pattern  Makers'  Journal,  Sep- 
tember, 1905. 


33 1]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  22$ 

kins,  has  since  then  been  regularly  reelected  each  term  by 
popular  vote.  Nevertheless,  an  outsider  has  greater  diffi- 
culty in  unseating  the  officers  in  power  under  the  system  of 
popular  elections  than  under  the  system  of  election  by 
conventions. 

The  trade  unionists  believe  that  the  members  can  be 
educated  to  cast  their  ballots  intelligently.  "  In  a  new 
organization,"  declared  a  prominent  trade-union  official  to 
the  writer,  "  there  is  little  hope  that  the  members  will  exer- 
cise intelligently  the  power  placed  in  their  hands.  But  there 
is  also  little  surety  that  representative  government  will  be 
more  successful  at  such  an  early  stage.  Moreover,  the  trade 
unionists,  like  other  people,  learn  by  their  mistakes.  They 
can,  I  believe,  be  educated  to  use  the  ballot  intelligently. 
Experience  has  already  shown  that,  as  a  union  grows  older, 
the  members  vote  with  greater  discrimination,  and,  in  gen- 
eral, the  system  of  the  referendum  proves  much  more  satis- 
factory." The  members  are  greatly  aided  in  rendering 
intelligent  decisions  by  the  discussions  in  the  journal,  which 
is  published  by  nearly  every  national  union.  Like  the  daily 
newspaper  in  the  democratic  State,  the  trade  paper  has 
become  an  important  molder  of  public  opinion,  and  under 
wise  and  scrupulous  management  may  help  the  members  to 
display  good  judgment  in  casting  their  ballots. 

Another  great  difficulty  which  the  trade  unions  have  ex- 
perienced in  their  use  of  the  referendum  is  the  failure  of 
a  large  part  of  the  members  to  vote.  Only  on  very  important 
questions,  such  as  proposed  changes  in  the  system  of  sick 
or  death  benefits  or  a  proposed  increase  of  dues,  is  the  vote 
large ;  and  even  then  a  great  number  fail  to  cast  their  bal- 
lots. Very  often  a  subordinate  society,  engrossed  by  local 
affairs,  will  neglect  even  to  consider  at  its  meetings  a  matter 
referred  to  it  by  the  national  union.  One  delegate  reported 
to  the  convention  of  Plumbers  in  1896  that  the  local  union 
of  which  he  was  a  member  had  not  voted  on  a  single  ques- 
tion submitted  to  it  by  the  natii^nal  officers  during  the 
period  since  last  convention.     Such  a  measure  would  be 

IS 


226  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [332 

tabled  from  week  to  week,  and  finally  its  consideration 
would  be  postponed  indefinitely.^^  On  one  question  referred 
to  the  members  of  the  United  Association  of  Journeymen 
Plumbers  at  this  time,  only  one  hundred  and  one  local  socie- 
ties voted  out  of  about  one  hundred  and  ninety.  On  one 
occasion  early  in  the  history  of  the  Cigar  Makers'  Inter- 
national Union  seventeen  local  societies  voted  and  thirty 
failed  to  return  their  votes  on  questions  submitted  to  them.^® 

When  a  local  union  does  trouble  itself  to  consider  a 
measure  referred  by  the  national  union,  the  ballot  is  fre- 
quently cast  at  a  late  hour  when  local  business  has  been 
disposed  of  and  many  of  the  members  have  gone  home. 
The  result  is  that  often  the  vote  of  even  those  local  societies 
which  make  returns  includes  only  a  small  portion  of  their 
membership.  On  one  occasion  in  the  Cigar  Makers'  Inter- 
national Union  only  about  2700  out  of  20,000  members  voted 
on  a  question  submitted  to  referendum.**"  In  the  United 
Brotherhood  of  Carpenters  and  Joiners  the  returns  on  four 
measures  submitted  to  the  members  by  the  national  officers 
in  1892  were  made  by  352  locals  out  of  798,  and  the  total 
number  voting  was  only  8880  out  of  a  membership  of 
57,937.®^  Often,  therefore,  the  referendum  means  the  rule 
of  a  minority  over  a  majority  too  indifferent  to  perform  its 
part  in  the  government  of  the  organization. 

When  at  least  a  majority  or  two-thirds  vote  is  required  to 
pass  a  measure,  decisive  action  is  frequently  difficult  to 
obtain.  For  a  time  the  Bricklayers  required  that  all  appli- 
cations for  strike  benefits  must  be  approved  by  a  two-thirds 
vote  of  the  local  unions,  but  very  often  not  even  a  bare 
majority  of  the  local  unions  voted  on  the  applications.  In 
consequence,  until  the  system  was  reformed,  no  local  society 
could  secure  an  assurance  of  the  financial  assistance  of  the 
international  union.*^     Some  national  unions  provide  that 

'*  Proceedings,  in  Supplement  to  United  Association  Journal,  vol. 
iii,  no.  I,  p.  28. 
°''  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  May,  1876. 
•"Ibid.,  December,  1886. 
"  The  Carpenter,  March,  1892. 
**  Report  of  the  Secretary,  in  Proceedings,  1888. 


333]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  22/ 

when  a  local  society  fails  to  return  the  vote  of  its  members, 
they  shall  be  counted  as  having  voted  in  the  affirmative.  It 
is  argued  that  if  a  local  union  were  greatly  opposed  to  a  par- 
ticular matter,  it  would  take  the  trouble  to  vote.  This 
assumption  is  not  always  correct. 

Some  associations  compel  members  to  vote  by  imposing 
fines  for  failure  to  do  so.  These  unions  proceed  on  the 
principle  which  may  some  day  find  general  acceptance  in 
the  democratic  State,  that  the  act  of  voting  is  a  duty  as  well 
as  a  privilege,  and  that  a  man  who  shirks  this  duty  should 
be  punished.  The  Chain  Makers  and  the  Stove  Mounters 
impose  fines  for  failure  to  vote  on  any  question  submitted  to 
referendum.  Unions  of  a  few  other  trades,  such  as  the 
Bakers,  Carriage  and  Wagon  Workers,  Cigar  Makers, 
Coopers,  and  Tobacco  Workers,  levy  such  a  penalty  only 
when  a  full  vote  is  considered  especially  important.  The 
Bakers  and  the  Carriage  and  Wagon  Workers  thus  impose 
a  fine  only  for  failure  to  vote  at  the  election  of  officers,  and 
the  Coopers  only  for  failure  to  make  a  decision  on  applica- 
tions for  strike  benefits. 

At  first  the  members  do  not  use  their  right  of  initiative ; 
later  they  use  it  too  frequently. ^^  When  the  system  of  direct 
government  has  been  recently  inaugurated  and  is  still  unfa- 
miliar, little  advantage  is  taken  of  the  right  to  initiate 
legislation.  Shortly  after  its  adoption  by  the  Carpenters  in 
1884,  the  officers  expressed  great  dissatisfaction  because  the 
members,  while  criticising  freely  the  method  of  government, 
made  no  attempt  to  rectify  defects  by  submitting  amend- 
ments to  popular  vote.®*  Though  the  Iron  Molders  adopted 
the  initiative  and  referendum  in  1876,  no  use  was  made  of 
them  for  some  years  thereafter.  About  1884,  when  the 
methods  of  government  in  this  organization  greatly  needed 
reforming,   the   necessary   legislation   was   not   passed   by 

**  Sidney  and  Beatrice  Webb  have  shown  the  existence  of  a 
similar  tendency  in  British  trade  unions  (Industrial  Democracy, 
p.  23). 

•*  The  Carpenter,  June,  1884.     See  also  ibid.,  February,  1884. 


228  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [334 

means  of  the  referendum,  but  by  a  convention  especially 
convoked  for  the  purpose.*'^ 

After  the  members  have  grown  accustomed  to  legislating 
for  themselves,  the  pendulum  is  apt  to  swing  too  far  to  the 
other  extreme.  The  constitution  is  amended  too  frequently. 
Unimportant,  trivial,  even  fantastic  measures,  as  well  as 
emergency  legislation,  are  proposed  for  adoption  by  the 
several  local  unions.  It  is  true  that  a  large  number  of 
such  proposals  are  voted  down  when  put  to  popular  vote, 
but  much  time  is  consumed,  and  the  association  is  subjected 
to  needless  expense.  Furthermore,  many  of  the  more  sen- 
sible amendments  are  adopted,  and  thus  the  fundamental 
rules  are  kept  in  a  continual  state  of  change.  At  times  not 
even  the  officers  know  what  is  the  rule  on  a  certain  subject. 
The  result  is  often  administrative  chaos. 

This  irresponsible  tendency  to  submit  constitutional 
amendments  was  well  illustrated  at  a  certain  period  in  the 
history  of  the  Cigar  Makers.  After  1879  the  referendum 
was  used  by  the  union  not  only  to  adopt  legislation,  but 
also  to  sanction  strikes  and  make  judicial  decisions.  Thus 
the  members  had  ample  opportunity  to  become  familiar  with 
the  system  of  direct  government,  and  they  soon  began  to 
exercise  very  frequently  their  right  of  initiative.  Requests 
to  submit  constitutional  amendments  to  popular  vote  poured 
into  the  headquarters  of  the  association.  Every  local 
society  seemed  to  consider  that  to  propose  one  or  more 
amendments  was  an  important  duty.  The  secretary  of  a 
local  union  in  Omaha  wrote  to  the  central  office  that  as  the 
other  local  unions  were  proposing  amendments,  the  members 
of  the  Omaha  society  thought  that  they  ought  to  propose 
one  also,  that  the  rest  of  the  trade  might  know  that  the 
branch  in  Nebraska  was  still  in  existence.*'*^  The  character 
of  these  amendments  varied  widely.  On  one  occasion  a 
local  union  submitted  a  series  of  amendments  covering  every 
part  of  the  constitution  from  the  preamble  to  the  last 
article.''^     Another  union  proposed  to  start  a  cooperative 

"°  Iron  Holders'  Journal  May,  1884. 

""  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  July,  1883. 

"'  Ibid.,  August,  1887. 


33  S]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  229 

shop  in  towns  where  the  unions  had  less  than  fifty  members. 
A  third  proposed  to  reduce  the  per  capita  tax  from  sixty 
to  thirty-six  cents  because  there  was  a  surplus  of  several 
hundred  dollars  in  the  national  treasury."^  Another  de- 
manded that  the  system  of  paying  sick  benefits  be  abolished. 
This  last  proposal  roused  the  anger  of  the  president,  who 
was  an  enthusiastic  advocate  of  the  sick  benefit  scheme,  and 
had  secured  its  adoption  after  a  long  and  hard  struggle. 
"  The  regular  time  to  amend  the  constitution — especially 
when  such  an  important  question  is  involved — is,"  he  de- 
clared, "  during  the  annual  convention  when  everything  can 
be  discussed  and  ventilated."""  Another  local  society  pro- 
posed to  raise  the  president's  salary,  but  that  oflficer  again 
urged  that  the  matter  be  left  to  the  next  convention,  where 
it  could  be  properly  discussed.  He  asked  the  unions  to  vote 
against  the  measure,  and  in  accordance  with  his  advice  it 
was  voted  down.'*^  Writers  in  the  official  journal  declared 
that  the  frequent  amending  of  the  constitution  created 
inextricable  confusion.  "  Not  one  man  in  a  hundred,"  they 
said,  "  knows  what  the  rule  of  the  association  is  on  any 
matter.  This  uncertainty  leads  to  lack  of  respect  for  and 
violation  of  the  law,  and  is  demoralizing  to  the  association." 
Because  of  the  mania  for  proposing  legislation,  most 
national  unions  have  limited  the  initiatory  power  of  the 
local  unions.  Usually  an  amendment  proposed  by  one  local 
society  must  be  endorsed  by  a  certain  number  of  others 
before  it  is  submitted  to  popular  vote.  In  the  Cigar  Makers' 
International  Union  a  measure  had  to  be  seconded  at  first 
by  four  and  later  by  ten  local  unions  before  it  could  be 
brought  to  referendum  vote.  The  consent  of  twenty 
branches  is  now  required. ^^  The  number  of  necessary  en- 
dorsements at  the  present  time  varies  widely  in  dififerent 
unions.  In  some,  only  ten  are  needed ;  in  others,  a  proposi- 
tion must  be  seconded  by  one  third  of  the  local  unions 
before  it  is  submitted  to  the  general  membership.     In  some 

**  Cigar  Makers'  Official  Journal,  March,  1883. 

""Ibid.,  Tune.  18S1. 

'"  Ibid.,  May,  1883. 

"Constitution,  18S2;  Constitution,  1884. 


230  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [33^ 

associations  measures  proposed  by  the  local  societies  must 
be  approved  by  the  general  executive  board  before  being 
submitted  to  the  referendum.  The  Carpenters  and  Joiners 
and  the  Meat  Cutters  and  Butcher  Workmen  require  the 
endorsement  either  of  the  general  executive  board  or  of  a 
specified  number  of  other  branches.  Some  eight  associa- 
tions give  the  subordinate  unions  no  right  of  initiative,  and 
permit  only  the  national  executive  board  to  submit  amend- 
ments to  popular  vote. 

The  right  of  appeal  to  popular  vote  from  judicial  decisions 
of  the  national  executive  board  is  frequently  abused,  and 
local  unions  make  such  appeals  when  they  have  not  one 
valid  argument  with  which  to  support  their  case.  These 
appeals  consume  time  and  also  occasion  considerable  trouble 
and  expense  to  the  organization,  and  a  few  associations 
restrict  the  right  of  the  subordinate  unions  to  make  them. 
The  Carriage  and  Wagon  Workers  provide  that  an  appeal 
from  judicial  decisions  to  referendum  vote  can  be  taken 
only  when  two  local  societies  in  dififerent  cities  demand  it. 
The  Machinists  and  the  Railway  Clerks  require  that  the 
plea  of  a  local  union  for  justice  must  be  endorsed  by 
twenty-five  other  societies  before  it  may  be  brought  to  a 
popular  vote.  The  Metal  Polishers  provide  that  the  mem- 
bers or  the  local  unions  wishing  to  appeal  to  a  vote  of  the 
members  must  make  a  deposit  of  fifteen  dollars.  This  sum 
is  forfeited  if  the  members  decide  against  them.  The  Paint- 
ers, Decorators,  and  Paper  Hangers  allow  a  local  union  to 
appeal  to  popular  vote  only  at  its  own  expense. 

A  thorough  and  systematic  revision  of  the  constitution 
and  by-laws  by  means  of  the  initiative  and  referendum  is 
difficult.  We  have  shown  that  even  under  the  system  of 
representative  government,  to  bring  order  out  of  legislative 
chaos  the  convention  had  to  refer  all  amendments  for  revi- 
sion and  systemization  to  a  small  constitutional  committee. 
Amendments  desired  by  the  local  unions  can  be  revised  and 
systematized  in  similar  fashion  by  a  popularly  elected  com- 
mittee, and  several  associations  have  engrafted,  such  a 
legislative  committee  upon  the  system  of  direct  government. 


337]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  23  I 

The  Granite  Cutters,  who  have  ceased  to  hold  conventions, 
revise  the  constitution  at  intervals  by  means  of  a  committee 
of  seven,  which  is  elected  by  a  plurality  vote  of  the  mem- 
bers. This  committee  considers  amendments  proposed  by 
the  local  societies,  selects  those  which  it  deems  desirable, 
and  presents  all  laws  for  ratification  or  rejection  by  vote  of 
the  members.  The  Tailors,  who  hold  conventions  at  irregu- 
lar and  infrequent  intervals,  also  elect  such  a  committee  to 
revise  the  constitution. 

However  clear,  definite,  and  harmonious  may  be  a  series 
of  amendments  as  originally  drawn  up  by  convention  or  by 
a  legislative  committee,  they  are  often  ambiguous  and  con- 
flicting in  the  form  finally  adopted  by  the  members.  It  fre- 
quently happens  that  while  a  section  requiring  the  organiza- 
tion to  undertake  a  certain  activity  is  adopted,  another 
section  necessary  for  the  efficient  administration  of  the 
activity  fails  to  pass.  The  president  of  the  United  Brother- 
hood of  Carpenters  and  Joiners  said  on  one  occasion :  "  My 
observation  has  been  that  very  often  a  measure  adopted  by 
the  delegates  in  convention  who  discuss  carefully  each  sec- 
tion of  the  proposed  rules  is  definite  and  clear.  But  upon 
being  passed  by  a  general  vote  of  our  members  it  is  usually 
as  clear  as  mud — often  conflicting,  always  indefinite,  scarcely 
ever  interpreted  alike  by  any  two  members."'-  He  pro- 
posed as  a  remedy  that  only  general  questions — as,  for 
example,  whether  such  and  such  a  policy  or  such  and  such 
a  benefit  be  adopted — should  be  submitted  to  a  simple  yea 
and  nay  vote  of  the  members.  The  detailed  rules  necessary 
to  carry  out  the  proposal  could,  he  thought,  be  drawn  up 
by  convention.  Such  a  plan  has  not  been  adopted  by  the 
international  unions. 

A  serious  objection  to  the  use  of  the  strike  referendum 
is  the  long  delay  before  the  vote  can  be  counted  and  the 
decision  announced.  When  strike  applications  are  sub- 
mitted to  the  general  executive  board,  a  reply  can  be  sent 
back  by  use  of  the  telegraph,  sometimes  within  twenty-four 
hours.    When  submitted  to  referendum,  often  several  weeks 

"  Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings,  1898,  p.  8. 


232  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [338 

or  a  month  passes  before  all  of  the  local  unions  can  hold 
meetings  and  the  result  of  the  vote  be  sent  in  to  headquarters. 
In  industries  where  conditions  change  rapidly  the  slow 
working  of  the  machinery  of  the  referendum  is  especially 
serious.  In  the  building  trades  a  strike,  to  be  effective, 
must  be  declared  without  delay.  If  the  question  is  sub- 
mitted to  the  referendum,  the  work  may  be  finished  before 
the  strike  is  declared.  Moreover,  in  many  industries  the 
periods  of  activity  and  depression  alternate  rapidly,  often 
according  to  the  season  of  the  year,  and  a  strike  is  therefore 
more  likely  to  succeed  at  one  time  than  at  another.  If  the 
inauguration  of  the  strike  is  much  delayed  by  use  of  the 
referendum,  the  propitious  time  may  have  passed. 

Another  fact  to  be  noted  is  that  the  delay  in  declaring  the 
strike  gives  the  employer  an  opportunity  to  learn  that  such 
a  movement  is  in  contemplation.  This  objection,  however, 
is  not  considered  serious.  Then,  too,  in  most  industries 
conditions  are  more  or  less  static  during  the  short  interval 
required  to  submit  a  strike  application  to  the  referendum. 
Indeed,  some  labor  leaders  contend  that  the  delay  is  advan- 
tageous. The  local  society  has  time  for  calm  consideration, 
and  thus  may  be  led  to  adjust  its  grievance  peacefully,  or, 
if  the  matter  is  a  petty  one,  may  on  second  thought  decide 
not  to  declare  a  strike.  It  is  also  true  that  by  rigidly  en- 
forced administrative  rules  the  time  required  to  return  the 
vote  to  headquarters  may  be  considerably  shortened.  The 
Cigar  Makers,  who  have  used  the  strike  referendum  for 
nearly  thirty  years,  require  the  vote,  under  penalty  of  a  fine, 
to  be  returned  within  one  week  from  the  day  on  which  the 
strike  circular  was  mailed.  Local  societies  situated  more 
than  six  hundred  miles  from  the  central  office  are  allowed 
to  return  their  vote  by  telegraph  at  the  expense  of  the  inter- 
national union. 

The  strike  referendum  is  not,  however,  very  popular,  cer- 
tainly not  so  popular  as  the  legislative  referendum.  Though 
one  of  the  earliest  forms  of  direct  government  to  be  adopted 
by  American  unions,  it  is  used  by  some  twenty  organizations 


339]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  233 

at  the  present  day,  as  compared  with  more  than  seventy 
unions  which  submit  constitutional  amendments  to  popu- 
lar vote. 

The  election  of  trade-union  officers  by  popular  vote  has 
several  drawbacks  which  have  deterred  some  organizations 
from  adopting  the  system.  The  most  serious  objection  is 
the  expense,  which  is  always  greater,  sometimes  very  much 
greater,  than  the  cost  of  maintaining  the  convention  during 
the  short  time  required  by  that  body  to  elect  officers.  The 
first  popular  elections  held  by  the  Cigar  Makers'  Interna- 
tional Union  in  1892  cost  the  association  about  $15,000. 
The  rules  of  this  union  provided  that  a  candidate,  to  be 
elected,  must  receive  a  majority  of  the  votes  cast.  Because 
of  this  provision,  four  ballots  had  to  be  taken,  and  in  con- 
sequence the  expense  was  quadrupled."^  This  rule  was  later 
modified  by  the  provision  that  on  the  second  ballot  all  candi- 
dates should  be  dropped  save  the  two  receiving  the  highest 
number  of  votes.  By  this  means,  not  more  than  two  ballots 
ever  had  to  be  cast,  and  thus  the  expense  was  reduced  at 
the  second  election  to  $5029.  Although  it  has  been  still 
further  reduced  on  subsequent  occasions,'*  the  cost  of  popu- 
lar elections  is  still  considerably  greater  than  that  of  elec- 
tion by  convention. 

Parties  or  factions  are  found  in  the  trade  union,  and,  as 
in  the  democratic  state,  the  struggle  of  these  factions  to 
place  their  candidates  in  office  subjects  the  system  of  popu- 
lar elections  to  grave  abuses.  It  is  true  that  parties  are 
often  created  in  the  trade  union  from  honest  and  not 
unhealthy  differences  of  opinion.  For  example,  there  is 
likely  to  be  a  radical  progressive  faction  favoring  high  dues 
and  a  national  system  of  benefits,  and  a  conservative  or 
reactionary  party  which  favors  low  dues  and  a  restriction 
of  national  union  activities.  The  Boot  and  Shoe  Workers' 
Union  for  several  years  has  been  divided  into  two  warring 
camps  over  the  question  of  the  union  label.  The  faction  in 
power  has  advocated  the  policy  of  using  the  label,  not  to 

"  Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings,  1803. 
'*  Report  of  the  President,  in  Proceedings,  1896. 


234  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS         [34© 

secure  an  immediate  increase  of  wages,  but  to  increase  the 
membership  as  quickly  as  possible,  and  so  ultimately  build 
up  a  strong  organization.  In  order  to  secure  the  union 
stamp,  the  manufacturer  is  therefore  only  required  to  em- 
ploy union  workers.  He  may  pay  the  same  rate  of  wages 
as  before.  He  is  also  partly  protected  by  the  arbitration 
clause  in  his  label  contract  from  frequent  strikes  on  the  part 
of  his  employees.  On  these  terms  many  manufacturers  are 
willing  to  use  the  label,  and  thus  a  number  of  workers  in 
previously  non-union  factories  have  been  forced  into  the 
organization.  The  members  of  the  other  faction  consider 
this  policy  dilatory  and  vacillating.  They  think  that  in 
return  for  the  use  of  the  union  stamp  the  employer  should 
be  required  to  raise  the  wages  of  his  workmen.  They  dis- 
like, also,  the  policy  of  arbitration,  and  favor  the  older  and 
more  belligerent  method  of  the  strike.'^^  Factions  or  parties 
within  the  union  frequently  do  not  arise  from  disputes  as  to 
policy  but  merely  from  the  ambitions  of  the  leaders.  One 
of  the  commonest  forms  of  party  struggle  in  the  trade  union 
is  the  contest  between  the  administration  officials  who  try 
to  retain  their  offices  and  rival  leaders  who  endeavor  to 
secure  their  places. 

From  whatever  cause  such  parties  may  arise,  their  exist- 
ence is  not  infrequently  harmful.  Sometimes  both  sides 
resort  to  abusive  language,  and  the  whole  union  becomes 
thoroughly  disorganized.  Sometimes,  also,  the  factions 
resort  to  ballot-stuffing  and  other  fraudulent  methods."^    In 

'^  Report  of  the  President,  in  the  Shoe  Workers' Journal,  July,  1907. 

"The  general  secretary-treasurer  in  his  report  to  the  eighth  con- 
vention of  the  Boot  and  Shoe  Workers'  Union  in  1907  gave  the 
following  six  possibilities  of  fraud  in  elections  by  popular  vote 
(Shoe  Workers'  Journal,  September,  1907,  p.  35)  : — 

"First:  Only  a  small  percentage  of  members  vote,  falling  far 
short  of  a  popular  expression  and  leaving  vast  opportunity  for  fraud. 

Second :  Those  who  do  not  vote  may  be  voted  by  the  local  in- 
spectors. 

Third :  The  ballots  of  those  who  do  vote  may  be  changed  by  the 
local  inspectors. 

Fourth :  Unions  may  be  disqualified  for  technical  and  uninten- 
tional errors  or  omissions. 

Fifth:  Unions  may  be  disqualified  by  persons  committing  fraud 
purposely  to  disqualify  the  union. 

Sixth :  The  general  inspector  of  election  may  be  influenced." 


34l]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  235 

a  recent  popular  election  in  the  Boot  and  Shoe  Workers' 
Union  charges  of  fraud  were  made  by  the  old  officers,  who 
were  defeated  candidates  for  election.  The  national  execu- 
tive board  called  for  a  reelection.  One  faction,  denying  the 
authority  of  the  board  to  require  this,  carried  the  contro- 
versy into  the  courts,  which  declared  that  the  executive 
board  of  the  national  trade  union  had  legal  power  to  take 
such  action.  The  matter  was  finally  settled  by  calling  a 
special  convention,  where  the  controversy  was  thrashed  out, 
and  where  the  old  officers  were  again  chosen.  Several  years 
ago  a  similar  instance  occurred  in  the  Glass  Workers'  Asso- 
ciation. At  a  popular  election,  held  about  1896,  the  candi- 
date of  one  faction  in  that  organization  was  declared  elected. 
The  other  faction  demanded  that  the  ballots  be  recounted, 
and  on  the  recount  its  candidate  was  declared  successful. 
The  case  v^ras  carried  into  the  courts,  which  decided  that  the 
first  candidate  had  been  elected;  but,  in  spite  of  this  decision, 
the  controversy  raged  with  much  bitterness  for  some  time. 

Notwithstanding  these  various  objections  to  the  initiative 
and  referendum,  the  trade  unionists  are  continuing  to  use 
this  system  of  direct  government  for  an  ever  increasing 
number  of  purposes,  and  have  also  become  enthusiastic 
advocates  of  its  adoption  by  state  and  municipal  governments. 
To  inaugurate  the  system  of  direct  legislation  in  American 
States  and  municipalities,  various  elements  such  as  the 
Grangers,  the  reform  leagues,  and  the  socialists  have  lent 
their  aid;  but  the  group  of  men  who  have  probably  been 
most  active  in  this  agitation  are  the  trade  unionists.  Their 
attitude  is  not  difficult  to  explain.  In  the  first  place,  they 
have  found  that  the  defects  of  the  referendum  are  not 
irremediable,  and  that  these  defects  do  not  outweigh  its 
obviously  great  advantages.  After  more  than  forty  years 
of  experience  with  the  referendum,  therefore,  they  are  still 
very  strongly  in  favor  of  that  system  of  government.  At 
the  same  time,  they  are  hostile  to  the  representative  form 
of  government  because,  as  they  would  express  it,  the  pro- 


236  GOVERNMENT    OF    AMERICAN    TRADE    UNIONS        [342 

fessional  representatives  betray  the  interests  of  the  laborers 
and  become  tools  of  the  capitalist  class. 

The  attitude  of  the  unions  may  be  illustrated  by  a  quota- 
tion from  the  United  Mine  Workers'  Journal.  In  1905  the 
miners  of  District  2,  Pennsylvania,  and  the  Pennsylvania 
Federation  of  Labor  adopted  resolutions  in  favor  of  the 
initiative  and  referendum.  Speaking  of  these  resolutions, 
the  journal  said :  "  It  is  .  .  .  the  beginning  of  a  movement  to 
restore  sovereignty  to  the  people  which  has  been  insidi- 
ously but  surely  wrested  from  them  until  now  the  people 
are  but  voting  machines  to  register  the  will  of  political 
bosses,  composed  chiefly  of  corporation  agents.  The  flagrant 
defiance  of  the  will  and  demands  of  the  people  is  not  even 
apologized  for,  nor  is  any  explanation  given  and  those  chosen 
as  servants  have,  by  the  gross  usurpation,  become  the  mas- 
ters. .  .  .  Next  year,  will  come  a  golden  opportunity  to  the 
grangers  and  trade  unionists  of  Pennsylvania.  A  governor 
and  legislature  are  to  be  elected.  Now  is  the  time  to  begin 
preparations  for  the  coming  battle  to  restore  to  the  people 
their  rightful  power  to  rule  themselves.  .  .  .  The  Journal  will 
from  time  to  time,  attempt  to  arouse  those  who  permitted 
this  degrading  state  of  affairs  to  flourish  to  their  rights, 
powers  and  duties  as  American  citizens."^'^ 

In  the  above  quotation  reference  was  made  to  the  possi- 
bility of  cooperation  between  the  Grangers  and  the  trade 
unionists.  In  the  struggle  for  direct  legislation  the  trade 
unions  have  sometimes  joined  hands  with  the  Grangers;  and 
when  such  a  combination  has  taken  place,  success  has  usually 
followed.  The  trade  unionists,  aided  by  the  farmers, 
secured  the  adoption  of  both  the  initiative  and  the  refer- 
endum in  Montana,  and  compelled  the  adoption  of  an  ad- 
visory initiative  and  referendum  in  Texas. 

The  American  Federation  of  Labor  stands  pledged  by 
resolution  of  several  conventions  to  the  inauguration  of  the 
system  of  direct  legislation,  and  state  and  city  federations 
in  various  parts  of  the  country  have  worked  energetically 

"United  Mine  Workers'  Journal,  May  25,  1905. 


343]  THE    INITIATIVE     AND    THE    REFERENDUM  237 

for  its  adoption.  Of  these  struggles  the  campaign  which 
has  been  carried  on  by  the  labor  unions  of  Massachusetts 
for  the  adoption  of  the  initiative  and  referendum  in  that 
State  is  more  or  less  typical.  This  movement  was  started 
in  Boston  about  1900  by  the  Boston  Central  Labor  Union. 
Thence  it  spread  to  other  parts  of  the  State.  Finally,  in 
1903,  six  hundred  and  seventy-four  unions  petitioned  the 
legislature  to  submit  to  the  people  an  amendment  embody- 
ing the  initiative  and  referendum.  Numerous  secretaries 
of  local  trade  unions  and  labor  federations  wrote  to  their 
representatives,  and  committees  from  various  organizations 
waited  upon  members  of  the  legislature,  urging  them  to  sup- 
port the  measure.  While  the  bill  secured  a  majority  vote, 
it  failed  to  poll  the  necessary  two-thirds  vote.  But  the  count 
stood  120  to  82,  and  the  unions,  in  no  wise  discouraged,  have 
continued  the  agitation.'^ 

The  method  of  questioning  candidates  in  order  to  secure 
laws  favorable  to  the  workman,  which  has  been  employed 
by  the  American  Federation  of  Labor  since  1901,  has  also 
been  successfully  used  by  it  in  the  fight  for  direct  legisla- 
tion by  the  people.  Candidates  for  election  to  the  State 
legislature  have  been  questioned,  and  under  the  threat  of 
defeat  have  pledged  themselves  to  vote,  if  elected,  for  an 
amendment  embodying  the  principles  of  the  initiative  and 
referendum."  This  method  of  sounding  candidates  made 
possible  the  adoption  of  direct  legislation  in  Montana,  and 
caused  the  legislatures  of  Missouri  and  Delaware  to  submit 
to  a  vote  of  the  people  the  question  of  introducing  the  initia- 
tive and  referendum.  In  Toronto,  Canada,  and  various 
cities  in  the  United  States  the  adoption  of  the  system  of 
direct  legislation  has  resulted  primarily  from  the  question- 
ing of  candidates  by  organized  labor.  Largely  as  a  result 
of  this  agitation,  the  movement  in  the  various  American 
States  and  municipalities  toward  direct  legislation  by  the 
people  has  made  rapid  progress. 


"  Shoe  Workers'  Journal,  May,  June,  1903. 

"American  Federationist,  December,  1903,  pp.  1292-1293. 


INDEX 


American  Federation  of  Labor, 
attitude  toward  admission  of 
negroes,  2"] ;  influence  on 
growth  of  national  unions,  56; 
opposition  to  independent  local 
unions,  130;  attitude  toward 
referendum,  236. 

Apprenticeship  rules,  national, 
35,  121,  122. 

Bakery  and  Confectionery  Work- 
ers' International  Union,  na- 
tional ofificers,  183;  governing 
branch,   194;  referendum,  227. 

Barbers'  International  Union, 
referendum,  213. 

Benefits,  national  sick,  death, 
and  out-of-work,  42-45. 

Blacksmiths  and  Helpers,  Inter- 
national Brotherhood  of,  ju- 
risdiction of  district  unions, 
68;  of  national  unions,  ^2,  73 

Blast  Furnace  Workers  and 
Smelters,  International  Asso- 
ciation of,  no  separate  local 
unions  for  each  branch  of 
trade,  19;  decentralized,  126. 

Boiler  Makers  and  Iron  Ship- 
builders, Brotherhood  of,  im- 
portation of  foreign  strike 
breakers,  85  ;  world  federation, 
92. 

Boot-  and  shoemakers,  division 
of  labor  among,  17;  indepen- 
dent local  unions  of,  130,  233, 
235- 

Boot  and  Shoe  Workers'  Union, 
separate  local  unions  for  each 
branch  of  trade,  21 ;  women's 
unions,  23,  24;  national  wage 
regulation,  38,  40;  Canadian 
unions,  78,  80,  81 ;  national 
control  over  strikes,  116. 

Branches  of  local  unions,  68-71. 

Brewery  workmen,  independent 
local  unions,  128. 

Brewery  Workmen,  Interna- 
tional Union  of  the  United, 
branches  of  local  unions,  70 ; 
national  officers,  180;  govern- 
ing branch,  194;  referendum, 
200. 


Bricklayers  and  masons,  inde- 
pendent local  unions,   129. 

Bricklayers'  and  Masons'  Inter- 
national Union,  size  of  local 
unions,  30;  national  union,  49, 
50,  54;  joint  councils,  65; 
strike  benefits,  118;  hours  of 
work,  120;  obedience  to  rules, 
126;  sources  of  constitution, 
135 ;  equal  representation  in 
convention,  163  ;•  national  ex- 
ecutive board,  186,  192 ;  refer- 
endum, 223,  226. 

Bricklayers,  United  Order  of 
American,  136. 

Bridge  and  Structural  Iron 
Workers,  International  Asso- 
ciation of,  jurisdiction  of  local 
unions,  16;  size  of  local  unions, 
30. 

Business  agent,    149-153. 

Canadian  unions,  75-81. 

Carpenters  and  joiners,  mobility 
of  labor  among,  33,  34;  Amer- 
ican branch  of  English  union, 
89-91. 

Carpenters  and  Joiners,  Amalga- 
mated Society  of,  size  of  local 
union,  31 ;  central  strike  fund, 
42;  early  national  unions,  49; 
branches  of  local  unions,  68; 
representation  in  convention, 
166,  169;  referendum,  204,  220, 
221,  226,  230,  231. 

Carriage  and  Wagon  Workers, 
International  Union  of,  refer- 
endum, 227. 

Chain  Makers'  National  Union, 
referendum,   227,   230. 

Cigar  makers,  division  of  labor 
among,  18;  independent  local 
unions.  128. 

Cigar  Makers'  International 
Union,  separate  local  unions 
for  each  branch  of  trade,  20; 
national  benefits,  44.  107;  na- 
tional union,  53,  54;  joint 
councils,  65 ;  agreement  with 
English  union  of  cigar  makers, 
89;  shop  strikes,  98,  99;  qual- 


239 


240 


INDEX 


[346 


ifications  for  membership, 
104;  national  fund,  106;  na- 
tional regulation  of  local  ex- 
penditures, 108;  of  strikes,  iii, 
112,  113,  114,  117;  of  appren- 
ticeship, 121 ;  obedience  to 
rules,  126,  127;  source  of  con- 
stitution, 135,  139;  usurpation 
of  legislative  power  by  na- 
tional officers,  174;  national 
officers,  176,  181,  184;  national 
executive  boards,  186,  187, 
189;  referendum,  199,  203,  204, 
205,  215,  228,  229,  232,  233. 

Cloth  Hat  and  Cap  Makers, 
United,  national  control  over 
strikes,  116. 

Coal  miners,  unorganized 
strikes,  9-10;  pit  meetings,  13. 
See  also  Mine  Workers, 
United. 

Compressed  Air  Workers'  Union, 
International,  territorial  juris- 
diction,  16. 

Coopers'  International  Union, 
district  unions,  57;  national 
executive  board,   192. 

Elastic  Goring  Weavers,  Amal- 
gamated Association  of,  ter- 
ritorial jurisdiction,  74;  na- 
tional funds.   107. 

Election  of  officers  by  popular 
vote,  202,  213,  214,  223-225,  233. 

Engineers,  Amalgamated  Society 
of,  89-91. 

Garment  Workers,  United,  sep- 
arate local  unions  for  each  na- 
tionality. 29;  national  control 
over  strikes,  116. 

Glass  Bottle  Blowers'  Associa- 
tion, history  of  unions,  48; 
district  unions,  57. 

Granite  Cutters'  International 
Association,  strike  benefits, 
114;  sources  of  constitution, 
138;  referendum,  203,  231. 

Hat  Finishers,  National  Trade 
Association  of.  national  execu- 
tive board.  186. 

Hatters,  shop  calls,  10,  145;  con- 
trol of  shop  over  wages,  97. 

Hatters.  United,  travelling  card, 
45. 


Hawaiian  unions,  82-83. 

Hod  Carriers  and  Building  La- 
borers' Union,  International,  no 
separate  local  unions  for  each 
branch  of  trade,  19;  decen- 
tralized, 126;  sources  of  con- 
stitution,  142. 

Horse  Shoers'  International 
Union,  Journeymen,  strike  ben- 
efits, 118. 

Hours  of  work,  national  regula- 
tion of,    122. 

Initiation  fee,  remission  to  trav- 
elling journeymen,  S7 ',  high 
fees,  86-88;  national  regula- 
tion of,  105. 

Initiative,  use  of,  196-237. 

Iron  molders,  independent  local 
unions,  128.  See  also  Mold- 
ers' Union,  International. 

Joint  councils,  64,  65. 

Judicial  power  of  district  union, 

64;  of  national  union,  108,  158. 
Judicial    referendum,    201,    208, 

209,  230. 

Knights  of  Labor,  influence  on 
growth  of  national  unions,  54. 

Labor  contract,  national  regula- 
tion of  terms  of,  38-42,  119- 
126. 

Lace  Operatives,  Chartered  So- 
ciety of  the  Amalgamated,  in- 
itiation fee,  86 ;  national  exec- 
utive board,  192. 

Ladies'  Garment  Workers' 
Union,  International,  separate 
local  unions  for  each  branch 
of  trade,  21 ;  control  of  shop 
over  wages,  97;  referendum, 
200. 

Lasters,  New  England  Associa- 
tion of,  58. 

Lasters'  Protective  Union,  quar- 
terly conventions.  215. 

Linotype  Machine  Tenders,  or- 
ganized as  branch  of  printers' 
local  union,  69. 

Loans  to  travelling  members,  37. 

Locomotive  Engineers,  Grand 
International  Brotherhood  of, 
jurisdiction  of  local  and  dis- 
trict unions.   14. 


347] 


INDEX 


241 


Locomotive  Firemen  and  En- 
gincmen,  Brotherhood  of,  ju- 
risdiction of  local  and  district 
unions,    14;    national    benefits, 

44- 
Longshoremen,  Canadian  unions 
of,  80. 

Machine  Printers'  Beneficial  As- 
sociation (Textile),  district 
unions,  11,  70. 

Machinists,  International  Asso- 
ciation of,  admission  of  ne- 
groes, 27;  territorial  juris- 
diction of  district  unions,  68; 
of  national  unions,  12,  73;  na- 
tional executive  board,  187, 
230. 

Marine  Engineers'  Beneficial  As- 
sociation, National,  national 
executive  board,  190. 

Meat  Cutters  and  Butcher 
Workmen,  Amalgamated,  a 
separate  lucal  union  for  work- 
ers in  each  department,  19,  20; 
admission  of  negroes,  27;  all 
nationalities  in  same  local 
union,  28,  230. 

Mexican  unions,  81. 

Mine  Workers,  United,  no  sepa- 
rate local  unions  for  each 
branch  of  the  trade,  19;  na- 
tional regulation  of  wages,  39, 
40;  national  limitation  of  out- 
put, 40,  41  ;  district  unions,  58, 
61,  67;  national  territorial  ju- 
risdiction, 7^ ;  world  federa- 
tion. 93,  95 ;  decline  in  power 
of  district  unions,  99-101 ;  con- 
trol over  strikes  by  national 
union,  no;  by  national  officers, 

Molders'  Union,  International, 
separate  local  unions  for  each 
branch  of  trade,  19;  national 
benefits,  44,  107;  history  of 
national  union,  51,  52,  53;  dis- 
trict agreements,  62,  63 ;  agree- 
ment with  English  union  of 
iron  molders,  87;  national 
funds,  107;  national  control 
over  strikes,  in,  113,  114.  ^U', 
national  wage  scale,  119;  ap- 
prenticeship, 120;  obedience  to 
rules,  126;  sources  of  consti- 
16 


tution,  133-135,  138;  commit- 
tees in  convention,  160;  usur- 
pation of  legislative  power  by 
national  officers,  174,  175;  na- 
tional officers,  176,  178,  180, 
185 ;  national  executive  board, 
187;  referendum,  205,  213,  219, 
220,  222,  227. 
Mule  Spinners,  New  England 
Association  of,  57,  74;  district 
business  agent,  63 ;  sources  of 
constitution,   137. 

Negroes,  separate  local  unions 
for,  26-28. 

Painters,  Decorators,  and  Paper- 
hangers,  Brotherhood  of,  early 
national  unions,  49;  referen- 
dum, 230. 

Pattern  Makers'  League,  popular 
election  of  officers,  224. 

Paving  Cutters'  Union,  sources 
of  constitution,  142;  national 
executive  board,  190,  191 ;  ref- 
erendum, 203,  218. 

Pen  and  Pocket  Knife  Grinders' 
and  Finishers'  National  Union, 
quarterly  conventions,  215, 
216. 

Philippine  unions,  83. 

Photo-Engravers,  International 
Union  of,  mobility  of  labor, 
33. 

Piano  and  Organ  Workers'  In- 
ternational Union,  national 
funds.  106;  national  control 
over  local  expenditures,  108; 
sources  of  constitution,  141. 

Pilots'  Association,  Interna- 
tional,  district  unions,  67. 

Plumbers,  Gas  Fitters.  Steam 
Fitters  and  Steam  Fitters' 
Helpers,  United  Association  of 
Journeymen,  early  national 
union,  49;  referendum,  206, 
212,  220,  223,  225,  226. 

Porto  Rican  unions,  82. 

Potters,  National  Brotherhood 
of  Operative,  sources  of  con- 
stitution.  141. 

Print  Cutters'  Association,  shop 
meetings,  n. 

Printers.  See  Typographical 
Association,  National. 


242 


INDEX 


[348 


Printing  Pressmen  and  Assist- 
ants' Union,  International,  ter- 
ritorial jurisdiction  of  local 
unions,    16;    referendum,    200. 

Quarry  Workers'  International 
Union,  sources  of  constitution, 
142;  referendum,  218. 

Railroad  Telegraphers,  Order  of, 
national  benefits,  44. 

Railroad  Trainmen,  Brother- 
hood of,  jurisdiction  of  local 
and  district  unions,   14,  67. 

Railway  Conductors,  Order  of, 
jurisdiction  of  local  and  dis- 
trict unions,  14,  67 ;  national 
benefits,  44. 

Referendum,   use  of,    196-237. 

Seamen's  Union,  International, 
district  unions,  dj,  71. 

Separate  local  unions  for  each 
branch  of  trade,  17-23;  for 
women,  23-25 ;  for  negroes, 
25-28;  for  each  nationality,  28, 

2.9- 

Shingle  Weavers'  Union,  Inter- 
national, constitutional  amend- 
ments, 157,  158. 

Ship  builders,  division  of  work 
among,  17,   18. 

Shirt  Waist  and  Laundry  Work- 
ers' International  Union,  shop 
unions,  13-14. 

Slate  and  Tile  Roofers*  Union, 
International,  referendum,  200. 

Sons  of  Vulcan,  United,  Na- 
tional Forge  of,  national  offi- 
cers, 178. 

State  unions,  66,  67. 

Stone  Cutters'  Association,  Jour- 
neymen, national  union,  49,  59; 
sources  of  constitution,  138; 
national  executive  board,  186; 
referendum,  203. 

Strikes,  national  fund  for,  42; 
district  fund  for,  63 ;  district 
control  over,  ()%  64,  loi ;  con- 
trol of  shop  over,  97-99;  na- 
tional control  over,  215-219; 
power  of  business  agents  to 
declare,  152;  referendum  of, 
200,  209,  222-223,  231,  232. 

Structural    Iron    Workers.     See 


Bridge  and  Structural  Iron 
Workers,  International  Asso- 
ciation of. 
Switchmen's  Union,  jurisdiction 
of  local  and  district  unions, 
14,  67. 

Table  Knife  Grinders'  National 
Union,  territorial  jurisdiction 
of  unions,  74. 

Tailors'  Union,  Journeymen,  na- 
tional organizers,   183,  231. 

Territorial  jurisdiction  of  local 
union,  16,  17. 

Tin  Plate  Workers'  Interna- 
tional Protective  Association, 
national  executive  board,   191. 

Tobacco  Workers'  International 
Union,  sources  of  constitution, 
142;  referendum,  227. 

Travelling  card,  45,  104. 

Travelling  journeymen  benefited 
by  federation  of  local  socie- 
ties, Z7-  , 

Typographical  Union,  Inter- 
national, no  separate  local 
unions  for  women,  25 ;  national 
apprentice  rules,  35,  36;  ex- 
change of  lists  of  "rats"  by 
early  printers'  societies,  z^;  na- 
tional wage  regulation,  40; 
central  strike  fund,  42,  43; 
cooperation  between  early 
local  societies,  45-47;  importa- 
tion of  foreign  strike  breakers, 
85;  early  national  regulation 
of  travelling  cards,  104;  strike 
benefits,  119;  sources  of  con- 
stitution, 132;  chapels,  145; 
local  executive  boards,  148; 
constitutional  amendments,  157, 
158;  equal  representation  in 
convention,  163 ;  national  offi- 
cers, 176;  national  executive 
board,  192. 

Window  Glass  Workers,  Na- 
tional, preceptories,  13 ;  na- 
tional regulation  of  wages,  40; 
world  federation,  92. 

Wire  Weavers'  Protective  Asso- 
ciation, American,  initiation 
fee,  86. 

Women's  unions,  23-25. 

Wood  Carvers'  Association,  In- 
ternational, referendum,  200. 


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peice  of  these  notes,  ten  cents  each,  unless  othebwise  indicated. 
Municipal  Government  in  England.     By  Dr.   Albebt  Shaw. 
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Work  Among  the  Workingwomen  of  Baltimore.     By  Pro!  H.  B.   Adams. 
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zii 


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Disturbing  Elements  in  the  Study 

and  Teaching  of  Political 

Economy 

By  JAMES  BONAR 

M.A.   (Oxford),  LL.n  (Glasgow) 
156  Pages.  12mo.  Cloth.  $1.00 


This  volume  consists  of  five  lectures  delivered  at 
the  Johns  Hopkins  University  in  the  spring  of  1910  by 
Dr.  James  Bonar,  the  distinguished  English  economist 
now  filling  the  office  of  Deputy  Master  of  the  Royal 
Mint,  Ottawa. 

As  the  title  suggests,  the  lectures  are  discourses 
not  on  economic  error  in  general,  but  on  the  more 
subtle  fallacies  which  are  apt  to  invade  the  reasoning  of 
trained  economists  in  spite  of  learning  and  discipline. 
Such  errors  creep  in  from  a  popular  political  philosophy 
(Lecture  I),  from  want  of  any  political  philosophy  (II), 
from  mistaken  aversion  to  theory  (III),  from  the  short- 
comings of  common  or  technical  language  (IV),  and 
from  the  wrong  handling  of  distinctions  of  time  (V). 

The  lectures  are  distinguished  by  the  scholarly 
tone  and  philosophical  breadth  that  characterize  Dr. 
Bonar' s  writings. 

Orders  should  be  sent  to 

The  Johns  Hopkins  Press, 

Baltimore,  Maryland 


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